Source: Hapai Te Hauora
Preventing avoidable harm starts with safe sleep. Hāpai Te Hauora is encouraging whānau and communities across Aotearoa to mark Safe Sleep Day 2026 on Friday 5 June.
This year’s focus is on ensuring every pēpi has a safe sleep, every time. The message is simple: “make every sleep, a safe sleep.”
Supporting this is the Foundations for Safe Sleep – a practical framework that helps both the sector and whānau create safe sleep environments in everyday life.
The Foundations were launched in 2025 in partnership with whānau, clinicians and researchers, bringing together mātauranga Māori and evidence-based practice.
They were developed in response to feedback that previous safe sleep messaging felt too clinical and didn’t reflect real whānau realities. This approach centres simple, practical guidance that supports whānau to make safe sleep decisions in everyday life.
Preventable sleep-related deaths continue to impact whānau across Aotearoa.
Hāpai Te Hauora National SUDI Lead, Fay Selby-Law, says safe sleep remains an urgent and ongoing kaupapa.
“The message is simple, but it is important: make every sleep a safe sleep. That means giving whānau practical guidance they can use every day, in ways that reflect their realities and keep their pēpi safe.”
The four foundations are:
- Face up, face clear
- Flat and firm
- Free (smoke, vape, alcohol and drug-free environment)
- Fathers & Family
Safe Sleep Day is an opportunity to raise awareness, share knowledge, and support whānau across the motu.
More information and resources can be found at: https://sudinationalcoordination.co.nz/
