New Zealand Paraplegic and Physically Disabled Foundation — Community Development Charity in Christchurch

New Zealand Paraplegic and Physically Disabled Foundation is a Trust charity in the Community Development sector, based in Christchurch, Christchurch. This organisation also provides funding to other charities. CharityData rates this charity B- (70.9/100). Annual revenue: $0.4M NZD. Financial data as at June 2025.

Mission: The Foundation was established in 1974 after it became apparent that one of the greatest needs of paraplegic and physically disabled persons was access to low-cost finance to help them become self-sufficient and independent. The concept of self-help, rather than charity, was one of the strong points of the original appeal which set up the Foundation and still holds good today. The foundations focus is to improve the quality of life of physically disabled people in NZ by providing affordable financial assistance. Over the years the Foundation has proved its worth in providing low-cost loans totalling over $25.6 million, numbering 1198 loans, with the current average loan being over approximately $74,000.

Registration Number
CC22276
Charity Type
Trust
Registration Date
2008-03-30
Status
Active
CharityData Rating
B- (70.9/100)
Sector
Community Development
Location
Christchurch, Christchurch
Website
http://paraloan.org.nz
Email
paraloan@xtra.co.nz
Funder Status
Grant-making charity (foundation)
Data as at
June 2025

Beneficiaries: People with disabilities

Financial Summary

Total Revenue
$0.4M NZD
Total Expenses
$0.1M NZD
Total Assets
$8.6M NZD
Net Assets
$8.6M NZD
Reserve Months
153.7 months of operating expenses
Staff Count
1
Volunteers
0
Financial Year End
2025-06-30

Financial History

YearRevenueExpensesNet Assets
2025$0.4M$0.1M$8.6M
2024$0.5M$0.1M$8.3M
2023$0.3M$0.1M$7.9M
2022$0.6M$0.1M$7.7M
2021$0.2M$0.1M$7.1M
2020$0.2M$0.1M$7.0M
2019$0.3M$0.1M$6.8M
2018$0.5M$0.1M$6.6M
2017$0.3M$0.1M$6.2M
2016$0.4M$0.1M$7.2M

CharityData Rating

Overall Grade
B-
Overall Score
70.9/100
Financial Score
73.5
Governance Score
65
Transparency Score
65

Board Members and Officers

Current Officers (7)

NameRoleAppointed
John MarrableTrustee2024-01-24
Hans WoutersTrustee2023-05-08
Carl McCulloughTrustee2022-07-20
Bryce McfallTrustee2022-06-09
Catriona McBeanTrustee2021-09-16
James HoggTrustee2018-01-01
Elizabeth ManuelExecutive Officer2016-04-11

Former Officers (15)

  • Peter van Vroonhoven — Trustee (departed 2022-02-07)
  • Kenneth Sowden — Trustee (departed 2023-03-27)
  • Fiona Allan — Trustee (departed 2021-12-31)
  • Alison Knowler — Trustee (departed 2023-06-19)
  • Bruce Tocker — Trustee (departed 2021-08-04)
  • Karl Hobman — Trustee (departed 2021-07-22)
  • Brad Hayward — Trustee (departed 2014-10-12)
  • Theresa Lynn — Trustee (departed 2017-12-31)
  • Ross Hynds — Trustee (departed 2014-10-12)
  • William Lean — Trustee (departed 2015-04-03)
  • Ross Livingstone — Trustee (departed 2008-10-18)
  • Phillip Humphreys — Trustee (departed 2019-12-18)
  • David Hynds — Trustee (departed 2009-11-16)
  • Christine Smith — Trustee (departed 2015-07-08)
  • James Weir — Trustee (departed 2012-01-01)

Similar Charities in Community Development

New Zealand Paraplegic and Physically Disabled Foundation logo
FunderCommunity DevelopmentTrustFoundation

New Zealand Paraplegic and Physically Disabled Foundation

CC22276Christchurch, ChristchurchRegistered 30 Mar 2008
Data updated: 6 days ago
Financials30 Jun 2025Rating3d ago

Financial data as at June 2025. Sourced from Charities Services register.

B-
71/100
Financial
74
Governance
65
Transparency
65

Reasons to look carefully (1)

These structural observations are drawn from public data and are worth considering before a donation. They are not allegations of wrongdoing, and they don’t affect the charity’s letter grade.

  • No chair recorded on the register
    No chair or presiding role is recorded in the register for this board of 7. The Charities Register does not require one to be identified, so this is a gap in the public record rather than a finding about the board.

Each signal is a data-driven observation, not a judgement. They fire automatically from the figures filed with Charities Services. A charity can address any of these by filing fuller disclosure or updating its officer register. Methodology: /about/methodology/concern-signals.

Revenue

$429.1K

Expenses

$96.1K

Assets

$8.6M

Staff

1

Financial data from Charities Services annual return (FY2025). Ratings calculated using CharityData v3.1.1 methodology.

Endowment Foundation

Special Entity Type

This is an endowment foundation that holds investments and provides grants. High reserves are expected and appropriate - this is not an operating charity.

Rating Note: Endowment foundations are rated using specialized criteria that recognize high reserves as appropriate. Metrics like grant distribution rate and investment returns are prioritized over program spending ratios.

Funder Profile

Grantmaker

This organisation makes grants or donations to other charities and organisations.

Funding Sectors
General
Beneficiaries
People with Disabilities
Geographic Focus
Canterbury

About

Mission

The Foundation was established in 1974 after it became apparent that one of the greatest needs of paraplegic and physically disabled persons was access to low-cost finance to help them become self-sufficient and independent. The concept of self-help, rather than charity, was one of the strong points of the original appeal which set up the Foundation and still holds good today. The foundations focus is to improve the quality of life of physically disabled people in NZ by providing affordable financial assistance. Over the years the Foundation has proved its worth in providing low-cost loans totalling over $25.6 million, numbering 1198 loans, with the current average loan being over approximately $74,000.

Who We Serve

Beneficiaries
People with disabilities

Key Statistics

Annual Revenue
$429.1K
Total Expenses
$96.1K
Net Assets
$8.6M
Staff
1
employees
Volunteers
0

Financial Trends

Financial Trends (17 Years)

Revenue Breakdown

Expense Breakdown

API Data

Based on annual return data. Detailed program/admin breakdown not available.

Financial Health Dashboard

Cents to the Cause
100c
For every $1 spent, 100c reaches programs
Strong
Sustainability
153.7mo
Could operate 153.7 months with zero revenue
Over-capitalized
Fundraising Cost
-
No fundraising data
No data

Based on latest annual return data. Metrics are calculated from reported financial data and may not reflect the full picture. View methodology

Revenue Diversification

46
Score /100
Concentrated
HHI: 5,441
Investment Income65.2%
Other34.5%
Donations0.3%

HHI (Herfindahl–Hirschman Index) measures concentration across 6 income categories. Lower HHI = more diversified. Score above 60 indicates healthy diversification.

Peer Comparison

Ranked against 135 peers · Community Development · $100K – $1M

Rating Score
71
#34/136
Revenue
$429K
#30/136
Reserve Months
153.7
#1/136
Surplus
$333K
#10/136
Staff Cost %
63%
#136/136

Peers are charities in the same sector and revenue size band. Rankings are based on the latest available data.

Rating

B-
Score: 70.9/100
Financial
73.5
Governance
65
Transparency
65
Why this grade: Financial 74 × 40% + Governance 65 × 60% = 68 → B-.
View Full Score Breakdown

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Contact Details

Address
Christchurch, Christchurch

Registration

Registration NumberCC22276
Entity TypeTrust
Registered30 Mar 2008
StatusRegistered

Companies Office

StatusRegistered
Entity TypeCharitable Trust
Incorporated10 Aug 1973
Registered office
Unit 1, 48 Lismore Street, Waltham, Christchurch

Sector & Activities

Primary Sector
Community Development
Activities
Acts as an umbrella / resource bodyMakes grants / loans to individualsMakes grants to organisations (including schools or other charities)

Data sourced from Charities Services register and publicly available annual returns. Our datasets may not be complete. Automated analysis can produce errors. Scores are calculated using disclosed methodology and are analytical tools, not investment ratings or recommendations. If you believe any data on this page is incorrect, please contact us at hello@charitydata.co.nz. For informational purposes only. Not investment advice. Last updated: 29 September 2026.