About Us
Nurture & Thrive Children’s Therapy Collective was established by Occupational Therapists Jamie Blank and Erin Rayner to bring together Allied Health practitioners with a shared commitment: to improve the health and wellbeing of tamariki, rangatahi, and their whānau.
Jamie and Erin began as solo private practitioners, supporting each other clinically and professionally. In July 2022, they formally joined forces to establish Nurture & Thrive Children’s Therapy Collective - driven by a shared vision to grow a diverse, values-led service. Their goal was to build a trusted network of clinicians who could support one another and deliver high-quality, therapeutic support that genuinely responds to the needs of tamariki, rangatahi, and their whānau across Aotearoa.
Today, Nurture & Thrive is an Occupational Therapist-led service, with a growing team of passionate professionals, including Health Psychology and Therapy Assistants. While OT remains at the heart of our mahi, we know that supporting neurodivergent and disabled young people calls for a holistic approach. That’s why we continue to grow, with the aim of (in time) welcoming new disciplines and developing new services to meet families where they are, with the support they truly need.
We support tamariki and rangatahi to feel empowered, engaged, and connected to the world around them. We help them participate in everyday activities with greater ease, joy, and confidence. We walk alongside whānau, providing knowledge, guidance, and encouragement - because when whānau are supported, everyone thrives.
Our mahi strives to remain neuro-affirming, sensory-informed, trauma-aware and grounded in relationship. Whether we’re building core strength, exploring big emotions, or helping a child feel safe in their own skin, we do it in partnership, and at the pace that feels right for each young person.
Our logo reflects the values that guide our practice.
Each fern represents a core belief;
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Empathy and care
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Family and child centred practice
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Respect and integrity
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And a commitment to fun and engaging therapy.
The surrounding circle represents the network of support around each child, including caregivers, whānau, kaiako, and health professionals, working together to nurture growth.
We believe every child deserves to be seen, supported, and celebrated—and every whānau deserves someone they can trust to walk alongside them.
What Does “Neuro-Affirming” Mean?
At Nurture and Thrive, we take a neuro-affirming approach, which means we honour neurological differences—like autism, ADHD, sensory processing differences, and other ways of experiencing the world—as natural forms of human diversity, not disorders to be “fixed.” We don’t assume what a label or diagnosis means for your child; rather, we take the time to understand their unique strengths, needs, and ways of being.
Being neuro-affirming means we:
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Focus on strengths, not deficits
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Use respectful, identity-first language (e.g., “autistic person,” if preferred)
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Understand behaviour as communication
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Prioritise safety, comfort, and co-regulation
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Create supportive environments that reduce overwhelm instead of demanding compliance
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Embrace sensory differences as valid experiences and help young people find more ease in their lives
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Avoid rigid “goals” and instead support growth, self-understanding, and autonomy
We stand by the principle of “nothing about us without us”, a call from the disability rights movement reminding us that neurodivergent people must be heard in shaping their own supports, identities, and care.
At Nurture and Thrive, we don’t speak for autistic people—we listen. We seek to continuously learn from neurodivergent voices, include lived experience in how we practice, and stay open to growth and feedback from the communities we support.