Stories by Rachel Helyer Donaldson

A New Zealand Defence Forces captain says the sacrifices army families make at this time are humbling.

Health NZ has proposed getting rid of the national maternity and early years programme Starting Well, and 25 fulltime roles will be cut from Health NZ's funding team.

It is the first festive period since the police stepped back from responding to low risk calls.

Seafood industry players are welcoming a government proposal to ease catch limits - but an academic says the rock lobster population may not support it.

Fire-weary Canterbury should get a much-needed respite from high temperatures and gales as a change in the weather arrives, while much of the motu has had a warm start to the weekend, MetService says.

Fewer tertiary students accessed funds through the Student Loan Scheme last year, but the amount they borrowed was up.

The midwives' union says it is "completely unacceptable and appalling" that dozens of midwife graduates were prevented from sitting their final exams before Christmas.

The closure of New Zealand's largest parent support centre and education provider is being described as a real loss, after seven decades of advocating for women, new parents and young families.

A new national diabetes register will show for the first time how many people are living with each type of diabetes in Aotearoa.

Interest in the taonga has taken flight after a single feather sold for a record-breaking $46,000 in May.

The landmark glasshouse in the city's botanic garden needs replacing rather than being "patched up", councillors have been told.

Lindsay McKenzie starts in the role today.

A proposed law change would give comedians some leeway when using other works of art to make their point, but it's not a free pass, a professor says.

Thousands of kittens will need foster parents in the coming months, and those staying at home for Christmas are the perfect candidates, SPCA says.

Young people exploited online often try to deal with it alone - but it's good to have a family plan, experts say.

Wellington's Golden Mile has done it tough this year, with grim financial times leading to the closure of about 50 stores, but some businesses are staying the course and even expanding. Audio

Meningitis can kill in 24 hours, and "it's essential we have a vaccination programme, free to everyone, because treatment often comes too late", bereaved dad says.

The 89-year-old Englishwoman had a career that straddled "the old world of acting and the new".

Hundreds of Wellington residents have piled on to social media to call for tea and toast to be put back on the menu of the city's maternity wards.

Prosecutors need to look at a range of factors, a process complicated by the fact the Bayesian is under "quite a considerable" volume of water.

Three New Zealanders die from accidental drug overdoses every week, with the number continuing to rise, new research shows.

The authority says the message needs to be clear after four boating deaths in a fourtnight - if in doubt, don't go out.

Fewer cruise ships could visit New Zealand if border levies are increased at short notice as is planned, the sector says.

Wellington's water provider hopes it can start excavating the site of a broken sewerage pipe in the Eastbourne harbour in Lower Hutt on Monday morning. Audio

The University of Otago's new Adult Restorative Dental Care certificate will allow oral health therapists to give fillings.