Music Industry News

SoundCheck Aotearoa is a registered charitable trust dedicated to supporting music people with building a safer and more inclusive culture for our music community. Through free education, direct support, resources, and advocacy, SoundCheck Aotearoa works alongside the community to prevent and respond to sexual harm, bullying, harassment, and discrimination.

Today, SoundCheck Aotearoa is launching a campaign to raise $50,000 to strengthen the work of SoundCheck Aotearoa and boost its Sexual Harm Prevention and Response Advisor (SHAPRA) service.

Since launching in 2023, SHAPRA has supported over 359 individual cases where members of the community have sought help to prevent or respond to harm in the music community. SoundCheck Aotearoa sees close to 2–3 new cases every week alongside ongoing support and follow-up for its total caseload at any given time.

SHAPRA is a free, confidential, and independent service providing trusted specialist advice, guidance, and support when it’s needed most. Whether someone is seeking advice about workplace policies, responding to an incident of harm, supporting a friend or colleague, or navigating a difficult situation themselves, the SHAPRA service is there to help.

The SHAPRA service is available to people who have experienced harm, connected third parties (friends, whānau, colleagues), businesses, organisations, groups including bands (PCBU), and people who have been accused of / have done harm.

Why support this campaign:

The need for safer music spaces has never been greater.

As demand for SoundCheck Aotearoa’s services continues to grow, funding pressures have increased. A reduction in core funding, combined with rising operational costs over recent years, means community support is more important than ever.

Donations help fund:

* Safe specialist delivery of the SHAPRA service
* Access to HR and Restorative Justice support when needed
* Further development and delivery of education and harm prevention initiatives
* Essential operating costs

Every dollar helps strengthen SoundCheck Aotearoa’s capacity to support music people, prevent and respond to harm, and create meaningful, lasting change across the sector. Together, the music community can build a future where everyone feels safer, supported, respected, and free to thrive.

DONATE TODAY

If you or someone you know needs immediate advice or support over the break, Safe To Talk (a free specialist Sexual Harm helpline) is available 24/7 nationwide. Call 0800 044 334 or text 4334.

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