Stories by Jimmy Ellingham

Tai Rāwhiti mothers - some of whom had turned to pliers and alcohol to numb tooth pain - are finding relief at a free dental service. Audio

After technology failures affected hundreds of students last month, alternative assessments will replace online supervised exams for the second semester.

As the clean up continues, anger is simmering about how the disaster was allowed to happen.

Gavin "Brick" Midgley has been playing rugby since 1981 - but won't decide if he will make it to 50 years of the sport until next season nears.

The Early Childhood Council spoke out against the ministry move as heavy handed.

Country Kindy's license will be cancelled by the Ministry of Education next Monday, meaning 22 children will have to move somewhere elsewhere.

Some businesses around the skifields have taken drastic measures, but others left behind say they now see some hope.

A survivor of abuse at Epuni Boys' Home says what he went through during his nine months there as an 11-year-old shaped his next 50 years.

It's prompted the Law Society to make a plea for increased safety measures in courthouses nationwide.

The region has only one MRI scanner operating and Health NZ is not prioritising buying any more. Audio

The heavily pregnant woman aged in her 20s and her stillborn child died in 2022, prompting then-PM Jacinda Ardern to call it a "devastating story".

With students panicked and distressed, a petition has been launched to ditch the system altogether.

Paul Joseph Dally was jailed in 1990 for kidnapping, raping and torturing 13-year-old Karla Cardno in Lower Hutt.

Meanwhile, in a public system overwhelmed with patients needing help one in five psychiatrist positions is vacant.

A Christine Toms says the wait for answers about what happened to her husband, Arthur, is torturous. Audio

From Confucius to rejected metaphors, debate on the controversial project took some unusual turns.

A controversial new road design in Palmerston North has caused one business to move, but a regular cyclist says the changes could avoid potentially fatal crashes. Audio

The death of a 69-year-old Palmerston North man - whose body was found months after he left his home for a walk - has been ruled a suicide.

The Ministry of Disabled People will no longer allow parents to opt for privately provided services if similar ones are publicly funded.

Children as young as four, including the former patient were given electroconvulsive therapy that lasted as long as 20 minutes with no muscle relaxant or anaesthetic.

Education, healthcare and social work students can work 40 hours a week unpaid on top of study and paid job commitments.

Andre Gilling served 16 years for the gruesome killing of Stanley Waipouri, but was held back by moves between prisons, Parole Board says.

Hospital beds for mental health patients are so in demand people are being turned away from wards or discharged suddenly.

The silt is gone and the road into the seaside village of Herbertville is under repair, but the pub remains closed.

Massey University is again facing a big deficit for the year, although so far its finances aren't as bad as feared.