Auckland’s marae-based drive-through vaccination centre

Auckland’s first marae-based drive-through vaccination centre launches in Papakura

The metro Auckland region’s first marae-based drive-through vaccination centre has launched today in Papakura to help local whānau get their vaccinations safely under Alert level 4.

The opening also coincides with the first day of a four day pop-up vaccination event in Mangere being run in partnership with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The launch of the new marae drive-through centre and pop-up site is part of the Northern Region Health Coordination Centre’s strategy to continue to rapidly increase vaccination capacity, as well as to continue to prioritise Māori and Pacific people.

NRHCC Vaccination Programme Director Matt Hannant said: “The new marae drive-through and pop-up centre are part of our continuing focus on supporting our Māori and Pacific communities, particularly those living in south Auckland in close proximity to the border.

“Our local Māori and Pacific partners have been very much leading the way in the vaccination rollout, and I particularly want to acknowledge Papakura Marae and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for their vital contributions in helping to protect our whānau and communities from COVID-19.

“The drive-though model is also proving really successful in terms of increasing our vaccination capacity so we will be continuing with all our current sites at least while we are in the Level 4 lockdown with discussions underway as to how we could keep that going even once we move down the alert levels.”

Papakura Marae CEO Tony Kake said: “We take a holistic approach to helping protect our whānau at the marae, with a testing centre, food bank and now the vaccination programme.

“It’s important that local whānau know that they’ll receive a friendly, welcoming service that’s tailored just for them and can meet a range of their needs. We’re encouraging local whānau to drop by any time for their vaccinations and bring along their bubble with them.”

Key facts on the marae drive-through centre

· The new centre will vaccinate around 300 people per day, increasing to around 500 people once it is fully up and running.

· It will initially focus on supporting local whānau, who will be encouraged to drive through with their bubble aged 12 and over.

· The site will also support Pacific people living in the area and disabled people.

Key facts on the Church pop-up centre

· The pop-up centre with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will take place from 1-4 September.

· It will focus on vaccinating the church’s congregation together with other members of the community in a mixed model of drive-throughs and walk-ins.

· They expect to vaccinate up to 3,500 people over four days.

Key facts on the drive-through centres

· The Airport Park and Ride drive-through centre in Mangere has vaccinated over 33,100 people in its first 8 days of operation.

· The Trusts Arena drive-through centre has vaccinated over 8,300 people since it launched last Wednesday.

· Additional locations for drive-throughs are currently being investigated, and more will be launched shortly.

· The drive-throughs have played an important role in increasing capacity, with the metro Auckland region having its busiest day on record on Monday, with over 26,000 vaccinations delivered.

· The region has now delivered almost 1.2 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

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