Tohu Manawa Ora | Healthy Heart Award portal: free, expert nutrition support for early learning services in New Zealand

Cardiovascular disease is New Zealand’s leading cause of death, responsible for around one in every three deaths, with unhealthy food and physical activity environments driving risk from early childhood. The Heart Foundation’s Tohu Manawa Ora | Healthy Heart Award programme addresses this challenge through a distinctive, provider‑led education model that supports early learning services to build heart‑healthy habits that track into adulthood.

Established in 2002, the programme’s objective is to equip educators, cooks, and leaders to create food and movement environments where the healthy choice becomes the easy, everyday choice for children under five and their families. Unlike traditional early childhood nutrition initiatives, the programme combines a whole‑service framework with on‑demand digital learning, real‑time expert nutrition support, and regionally delivered coaching, enabling sustained practice change rather than one‑off education.

Delivered free-of-charge nationwide through government funding, the programme removes cost barriers in a highly price‑sensitive sector. At any one time, 25% of early learning services are actively engaged, providing substantial reach and a powerful platform for population‑level impact. The programme aligns with the World Health Organization’s Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, integrating governance, curriculum, professional development, policy, and family engagement to embed change across entire services.

The portal, launched in 2022, is the programme’s core educational innovation. Accessible via phone, tablet, or computer, it offers 24/7, step‑by‑step guidance and bite‑size professional learning modules designed for time‑poor educators. Services can work flexibly in short bursts, pause when needed, and resume seamlessly, maximising limited non‑contact time without compromising care.

An integrated chat function provides free, direct access to Heart Foundation advisors, enabling personalised feedback on menus, policies, and learning experiences. This expert support helps services tailor evidence‑based changes to cultural, regional, and practical realities, while regionally based staff strengthen engagement through local coaching and face‑to‑face support.

Independent evaluation demonstrates the programme’s effectiveness at scale. It delivers improved nutrition and physical activity environments and generates a social return on investment of $4.50 for every dollar invested. By combining digital innovation, expert‑led education, and measurable impact, Healthy Heart Award exemplifies high‑impact, sector‑shaping education that advances health equity and drives lasting change.