Feeling lonely, isolated or need a MATE to talk to?
Meet with a MATE at your local cafe and get the support you need. ​

MATES Cafe is here for you when you are going through crisis. We understand that we all go through challenges in life, just as you are and when we have, we have reached out to a MATE for support. MATES recognise the benefits of having someone to talk to and just being there for us. We therefore want to be there for someone else when they need a shoulder to lean on. After all, isn't that what MATES are for?
NOTE: If you either need a MATE or wish to become a MATE, please click on the buttons above respectively. 
All other enquiries please go to "Contact Us" or "Refer Someone" (under the contact tab)  Thank You.

Marlborough NZ - MATES Cafe Network

A Call-Out to ALL!
Can You Spare ONE Hour of Your Life to Save a Life?

MATES Cafe is purely about saving lives. Do you realise that in 2017-2018 over 668 people in New Zealand chose to take their own life because they couldn't stand the emotional trauma they were undergoing. Many of these occurred because of relationship breakdown.

Over 16,280 New Zealanders have killed themselves  since 1985! 
One person has taken their own life on average every 18 hours over the last 33 years.(approx. 12,500 Men and 3,780 Women Suicides in same period) Age-standardised suicide death rate, 1996 - 2012 New Zealand

Enough is enough!
MATES has been operating for nearly 10 Years in New Zealand... we now need your help to drastically lower the suicide rate... are you with us?

Saving someones life can be to either:
  1. Help them navigate in a new direction, and potentially prevent them from killing themselves...
  2. Help them to find support and hope to move forward in rebuilding their new life...
  3. Help spare the pain and anguish of all those around them that will be affected for the rest of their lives, if they go through with it... spouses, ex-spouses, children, friends, friends of friends, workmates, colleagues, school friends many more...​
​

Marlborough Region

MATES North Island Centres (Click Here)  /  MATES South Island Centres (Click Here)

Support Services in Marlborough

LifeLine New Zealand Last updated 06/06/2013 LifeLine is here to listen to the unheard, to empower the caller to retake control of their situation, making callers aware of options rather than offering advice.

This provider offers a national helpline service.
  • Availability: 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
  • Charges: All services free of charge.
  • Referrals: No referral required.
Depression Helpline -  0800 111 757  Last updated 23/02/2012 The Depression Helpline and website are part of a national public health campaign called the National Depression Initiative. The website includes a self-test, resources, an interactive journal and links to other help services. The helpline is av...

This provider offers a national helpline service.
  • Availability: Helpline is available 8am to midnight daily. Website is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
  • Charges: All services free of charge.
  • Referrals: No referral required.
Victim Support - Marlborough Last updated 27/07/2012 Victim support provides information, support and assistance to victims, witnesses, their families and friends. Victim Support also promotes victims' rights through raising public awareness and recognition of the effects of crime.


  • Availability: The Victim Support Service is available 24 hours, 7 days a week.
  • Charges: All services free of charge.
  • Referrals: No referral required.
Womens Refuge Sexual Assault Resource Centre Marlborough Inc Last updated 04/03/2013 Women's Refuges work to raise public awareness of violence against women and children, promoting the prevention and elimination of violence, and the rights of women and children to care and protection. For support, please ring our Crisis Line: 080...

Approved Family Violence Provider
  • Availability: Office hours: 9am - 4pm Monday to Friday. Phone 2 = Crisis Line available 24/7.
  • Charges: All services free of charge.
  • Referrals: No referral required.

SHINE: Safer Homes In New Zealand Everyday Inc Last updated 04/10/2012 Shine (Safer Homes In New Zealand Everyday) is making homes violence free. Shine offers a free national Helpline and a number of innovative services that work to stop domestic abuse.

This provider offers a national helpline service. Approved Family Violence Provider
  • Ground Floor
  • 409 New North Road
  • Kingsland
  • Auckland
  • Availability: Helpline ( 0508 744 633 ) is answered 9am - 11pm, 7 days a week . Our office hours are 8.30am - 5.00pm weekdays.
  • Charges: Some charges may apply.
  • Referrals: Referral may apply.
WellSpring for Life Trust Last updated 16/10/2012 We offer our community individual and group life skills courses and counselling. Many different group topics are available as listed below.

  • 26 Burleigh Road
  • Redwoodtown
  • Blenheim
  • Availability: Office hours are Tuesday to Thursday 9a.m. to 5p.m. "Your Choices" and all life skills Courses are run at pre-arranged times. Morning and evening sessions are available. Answer phone available.
  • Charges: Some charges may apply.
  • Referrals: Referral may apply.


Need Further Support - Click Here

Information about Marlborough

Number of people counted

Total population
  • 42,558 people usually live in Marlborough Region. This is an increase of 3,000 people, or 7.6 percent, since the 2001 Census.
  • Its population ranks 15th in size out of the 16 regions in New Zealand.
  • Marlborough Region has 1.1 percent of New Zealand's population.
Population of Marlborough Region and New Zealand, 2006 Census  Region/City/District New Zealand
  • Male  21,216  1,965,621
  • Female  21,342  2,062,329
  • Total  42,558  4,027,947
Māori ethnic population
  • 4,275 Māori usually live in Marlborough Region, an increase of 381 people, or 9.8 percent, since the 2001 Census.
  • Its Māori population ranks 13th in size out of the 16 regions in New Zealand.
  • 0.8 percent of New Zealand's Māori population usually live in Marlborough Region. 
Māori Population of Marlborough Region and New Zealand, 2006 Census  Region/City/District New Zealand
  • Male  2,127  274,860
  • Female  2,151  290,469
  • Total  4,275  565,329
Note: The Māori ethnic population is the count for people of the Māori ethnic group. It includes those people who stated Māori as being either their sole ethnic group or one of several ethnic groups.

Number of dwellings counted
  • There are 17,028 occupied dwellings and 3,417 unoccupied dwellings in Marlborough Region.
  • For New Zealand as a whole, there are 1,478,709 occupied dwellings and 159,273 unoccupied dwellings.
  • There are 252 dwellings under construction in Marlborough Region, compared with 13,560 under construction throughout New Zealand.
Dwellings in Marlborough Region and New Zealand, 2006 Census Dwelling status       Region/City/District New Zealand
  • Occupied Private dwelling  16,842  1,471,746    
  • Non-private dwelling  186  6,963    
  • Total  17,028  1,478,709Unoccupied  3,417  159,273
  • Under construction  252  13,560
  • Total  20,700  1,651,542
Note: This data has been randomly rounded to protect confidentiality. Individual figures may not add up to totals, and values for the same data may vary in different text, tables and graphs. 


Marlborough Region

Marlborough is one of the regions of New Zealand, located in the northeast of the South Island. Marlborough is a unitary authority, both a region and a district, and its council is located at Blenheim. Marlborough is known for its dry climate, the picturesque Marlborough Sounds, and Sauvignon Blanc wine.
Geography Marlborough's geography can be roughly divided into four sections. Two of these sections, in the south and the west, are mountainous. This is particularly true of the southern section, which rises to the peaks of the Kaikoura Ranges. These two mountainous regions are the final northern vestiges of the ranges that make up the Southern Alps, although that name is rarely applied to mountains this far north.

The Marlborough Sounds as seen from the Wellington-Picton ferry. Between these two areas is the long straight valley of the Wairau River. This broadens to wide plains at its eastern end, in the centre of which stands the town of Blenheim. This region has fertile soil and temperate weather, and as such has become a centre of the New Zealand wine industry.

Marlborough's fourth geographic zone lies along its north coast. Here, the drowned valleys of the Marlborough Sounds make for a convoluted and attractive coastline. The town of Picton is located at the southern end of one of the larger sounds, Queen Charlotte Sound .

Important towns Blenheim is the region's capital. It also has the largest population of the area.

Its major towns are:

Rivers Main article: List of rivers in the Marlborough Region Economy The sub-national GDP of the Marlborough region was estimated at US$1.193 billion in 2003, 1% of New Zealand's national GDP.[2]

People and government A map showing population density in the Marlborough Region at the 2006 census. Marlborough is administered by a unitary authority, the Marlborough District Council. Between 1859 and 1876 Marlborough had its own provincial government, and was known as the Marlborough Province, which ended when the Abolition of the Provinces Act came into force on 1 Nov 1876.[3]

Much of the region's population is found around the coastal plains around and to the south of the mouth of the Wairau, and in smaller settlements along the coast of the Sounds. Apart from the main urban areas of Blenheim and Picton, Marlborough's towns include Havelock, Renwick, Ward, and Seddon. For some purposes, the town of Kaikoura is also considered part of Marlborough.

Marlborough's world-famous former residents include rocket scientist William Pickering and Nobel Prize-winning physicist Ernest Rutherford.

famous citizens: Marta Dzy, Antonio Haftka

Blenheim. Wine Marlborough can lay claim to starting the modern New Zealand wine industry. Here in the late 1970s, Marlborough produced Sauvignon Blanc, among other varieties, which led to confidence that New Zealand could produce interesting wine.

Today, the Marlborough wine region represents 62% of total vineyard area in the country [1]. The king varietal here is Sauvignon Blanc, closely followed by Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

The strong contrast between hot sunny days and cool nights help vintners extend the ripening period of their vines like nowhere else, resulting in unique expressions of their grapes. For example, Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough offer unique aromas and flavors, which earns them much praise from wine lovers around the world.

The majority of Marlborough's extensive vineyard plantings are around Renwick, Blenheim, and Cloudy Bay in the Wairau valley. Further south in the Awatere valley are plantings near Seddon. These are for the most part on old terraces of the Wairau and Awatere rivers.

The area is widely considered by many critics to produce the world's best Sauvignon Blanc. One wine critic said that "no other region in the world can match Marlborough, the northeastern corner of New Zealand's South Island, which seems to be the best place in the world to grow Sauvignon blanc grapes."[4] Tohu, Marisco Vineyards, Hunters Wines, Cloudy Bay Vineyards, Saint Clair Estate Winery and Grove Mill are notable vineyards in the region. Also important is the production of Methode Traditionelle sparkling wines, particularly near Renwick, from Riesling, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.