In this episode, we meet Millie Lambess, City Safety and Harm Prevention Team Lead at Wellington City Council.

Millie came to this work through community — through a belief in high-trust models, flexible funding, and the idea that the best responses start from what people actually need, not what the system is designed to offer. She began at council as a community connector during COVID, with a flexi fund and the autonomy to respond to whatever whānau needed. That experience shaped everything that followed.

In this episode, Millie talks about Wellington City Council's role as connector and convener across the homelessness sector — and why local government is often better placed than anyone to see the full picture. She talks about the research into women's rough sleeping in Wellington's CBD, what those women said about safety, storage, and what home actually means, and why success doesn't always look the way we expect it to.

We'd like to thank Millie for taking the time to speak with us for this episode.

And don't forget to subscribe to the CHA Hub Podcast — wherever you get your podcasts from.

The CHA Hub Podcast is sponsored by our Founding Partner, Westpac New Zealand.