about
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Vicki Culling, PhD
Director and Principal Trainer
I have a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Otago University, a Master of Arts (Applied) in Social Work (with distinction) from Victoria University of Wellington and a PhD in Women’s Studies from Victoria University of Wellington.
I'm a bereaved parent and have been actively involved in Sands for over twenty years. My first daughter was stillborn at 10 days overdue – an experience which led me to utilise my qualifications and skills to support bereaved parents and families and educate health professionals. I have worked actively at both national and local levels of Sands NZ. I was the first full-time worker for Sands NZ (for one year) when I won a Vodafone World of Difference scholarship in 2006.
I was a founding member of the national Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC) from 2005-2011. I was a member of the International Stillbirth Alliance (ISA) from 2005-2011, as the New Zealand representative on the Parent Advisory Committee and on the ISA Board. I was a member of the NZ Health Quality & Safety Commission’s Consumer Network from 2011-2015, and was the Vice-Chair of the NZ National Perinatal Pathology Service Clinical Network from 2018 to 2023.
I have completed the internationally recognised Resolve Through Sharing (RTS) Bereavement Training: Perinatal Death training in the United States and the accompanying RTS Bereavement Coordinator Certification. In 2023, I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Supervision through Massey University.
In 2016 I was awarded a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship to travel to the USA and the UK to learn about the training provided by support and advocacy organisations to their volunteers and staff.
I have presented at numerous national and international conferences on grief, and perinatal and infant loss, and I currently run support meetings and provide one-to-one support for Sands Wellington-Hutt Valley in a voluntary capacity.
In 2024, I was appointed as co-chair, alongside the wonderful Kendall Stevenson (Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Kurī, Ngāpuhi) of the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) by Te Whatu Ora Health NZ. We were charged with designing a national Perinatal Bereavement Care Pathway to support all bereaved whānau to consistently have access to equitable, high quality, individualised, safe and culturally responsive perinatal bereavement care. Our report was submitted in late June 2025 and we are still waiting for the report to be released and our recommendations to be actioned.
Recent articles featuring Vicki -
Sept 2019 - Stuff NZ - Bereaved parents get new info site but support remains inconsistent link
October 2020 - Capsule NZ - Don't Let it be the Elephant in the Room: How to Support a Friend or Family Member who has Lost a Baby link
October 2020 - Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Aotearoa (PADA) Pop Up Session for Health Professionals (Online webinar) link
June 2021 - The Grief Centre, Auckland, Facebook Live session on Grief and Baby Loss link
October 2025 - Stuff NZ, We were sitting in hell: the parents who gave birth knowing their baby had died - and the help they never got link
Director and Principal Trainer
I have a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Otago University, a Master of Arts (Applied) in Social Work (with distinction) from Victoria University of Wellington and a PhD in Women’s Studies from Victoria University of Wellington.
I'm a bereaved parent and have been actively involved in Sands for over twenty years. My first daughter was stillborn at 10 days overdue – an experience which led me to utilise my qualifications and skills to support bereaved parents and families and educate health professionals. I have worked actively at both national and local levels of Sands NZ. I was the first full-time worker for Sands NZ (for one year) when I won a Vodafone World of Difference scholarship in 2006.
I was a founding member of the national Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC) from 2005-2011. I was a member of the International Stillbirth Alliance (ISA) from 2005-2011, as the New Zealand representative on the Parent Advisory Committee and on the ISA Board. I was a member of the NZ Health Quality & Safety Commission’s Consumer Network from 2011-2015, and was the Vice-Chair of the NZ National Perinatal Pathology Service Clinical Network from 2018 to 2023.
I have completed the internationally recognised Resolve Through Sharing (RTS) Bereavement Training: Perinatal Death training in the United States and the accompanying RTS Bereavement Coordinator Certification. In 2023, I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Supervision through Massey University.
In 2016 I was awarded a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship to travel to the USA and the UK to learn about the training provided by support and advocacy organisations to their volunteers and staff.
I have presented at numerous national and international conferences on grief, and perinatal and infant loss, and I currently run support meetings and provide one-to-one support for Sands Wellington-Hutt Valley in a voluntary capacity.
In 2024, I was appointed as co-chair, alongside the wonderful Kendall Stevenson (Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Kurī, Ngāpuhi) of the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) by Te Whatu Ora Health NZ. We were charged with designing a national Perinatal Bereavement Care Pathway to support all bereaved whānau to consistently have access to equitable, high quality, individualised, safe and culturally responsive perinatal bereavement care. Our report was submitted in late June 2025 and we are still waiting for the report to be released and our recommendations to be actioned.
Recent articles featuring Vicki -
Sept 2019 - Stuff NZ - Bereaved parents get new info site but support remains inconsistent link
October 2020 - Capsule NZ - Don't Let it be the Elephant in the Room: How to Support a Friend or Family Member who has Lost a Baby link
October 2020 - Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Aotearoa (PADA) Pop Up Session for Health Professionals (Online webinar) link
June 2021 - The Grief Centre, Auckland, Facebook Live session on Grief and Baby Loss link
October 2025 - Stuff NZ, We were sitting in hell: the parents who gave birth knowing their baby had died - and the help they never got link
