The SWRB is delighted to congratulate SWRB Chair Shannon Pakura on her inclusion in the New Year Honours List 2022. 

Shannon is passionate in her advocacy and support for the social work profession and the difference that social workers make in people’s lives. Social workers work with many who need assistance, they make time for those who are afraid and alone, and without fuss, they drop off food parcels to those who need a little extra help to put kai on the table for their families. 

She has served as Chair of the SWRB since 2018. She holds a number of advisory and advocacy roles, including membership of the Oranga Tamariki Ministerial Advisory Board. She is a life member of the Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers having previously been their President.  

From initial steps to final fruition last year, Shannon, alongside others in the sector, has worked to promote mandatory registration of social workers in New Zealand. She is optimistic for the future and the benefits that mandatory registration brings to the social work profession, and the wider public. 

Shannon was the first social worker to be registered in Aotearoa. She has worked extensively in both the Statutory Child Protection and the Youth Justice social work sector.   

We congratulate her on appointment to Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in recognition of her services to social work.  

New Year Honours List 2022 | Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC)