Tēnā koe
Nō Òtautahi au
Kei Te Whanganui – a – Tara ahau e noho ana
Ko Swanson tōku ingoa whānau
I love working with children, young people and their families in the mental health space. As a clinical psychologist, I started my career at Capital and Coast District Health Board in the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service in Porirua, before moving to the United Kingdom. While living in London, I worked in several multi-agency teams, and gained firsthand experience of the importance of creating accessible services which engage people in their own communities. On returning to New Zealand, I worked in a range of youth services including child development, paediatric oncology, child and family mental health, and youth specialty services. It is through this work that I developed my passion for working specifically with adolescents who were struggling to regulate their emotions utilising Dialectic Behaviour Therapy, and distress tolerance skills.
In the 10 years prior to joining Pathways, I was honoured to lead the Porirua Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), and for 2 years the Pasifika CAMHS team.
I joined Pathways and Real in 2021, when I jumped at the opportunity to work as Child and Youth Director. I feel very lucky to work for an organisation, and alongside people, who are explicit about their values, who seek to live up to those values and who always hold the people that we support at the centre of everything we do. Working in an NGO is fast paced, exciting, and it leaves me feeling that anything is possible.
While my roots are in Canterbury, I now call Wellington home, where I live with my partner, children, one very old dog and one very young dog. When I’m not at work, I love doing anything that involves my family, walking in the bush, and getting my hands dirty in the garden.
