Stories by Rayssa Almeida

One woman spent thousands of dollars on a full back tattoo with all the North Pole has to offer to celebrate the jolly season.

Organisers for Gisborne music festival Rhythm & Vines say artist Dizzee Rascal will remain in this year's line-up, despite a conviction for domestic violence. Audio

The Indian community says the death of Sandringham dairy worker Janak Patel should not be in vain.

For some, fairy lights and Santas should only be allowed after 1 December, but is there a right time to get festive? Many are making the effort now.

Police were called to Ronayne Street about 4am after reports a man was causing a disturbance.

Security companies say there is a massive demand for services and staff are struggling to cope in the run-up to Christmas.

Rotorua residents say the concession of more emergency housing contracts will take a toll on the community.

Residents and business owners say the emergency housing system in Rotorua is "a bloody fiasco".

A resident says Rotorua has become a "ghost town" because of the rise on motels serving as emergency housing.

Hato Hone St John hopes to train 10,000 people around the country this month in CPR with the aim of increasing the survival rate of those who have cardiac arrests.

The SPCA has recovered 13 pigs left in very poor conditions in a property in the Wellington region.

Two teenagers have been arrested following ram raids on a petrol station and a store in Auckland.

Passengers were reportedly told they could not go through the security screening point because it was not staffed until 5am, forcing them to sit and wait in a cold hallway until the area opened. Audio

Businesses who have started offering their staff a four-day working week say this is what the future of employment should look like.

One of the first and biggest hotels to become a managed isolation facility in Auckland is ready to re-open its door for guests. Audio

Between bonds, fines and unexpected costs, some adult performers say they are losing money at their jobs - and are trying to get attention on their treatment. Audio

Sex workers say discrimination still "makes it hell" to get a mortgage, a bank account or simply open a business.

Blood cancer patients are urging Pharmac to fund a medicine that would restore the quality of life of those suffering with the disease.

Unmanaged dogs injure or kill many native and critically endangered marine mammals and coastal birds every year in New Zealand, DOC says.

The Far North Deputy Major says major arterial roads have been left looking like an 'earthquake zone' after wild weather hit the region last week.

Setting a police dog on two young people, resulting in serious injuries, was unjustified, an investigation by the Independent Police Conduct Authority has found.

The penal system is hard to navigate from the outside and nightmarish for those inside, a former prisoner and an inmate's partner say.

Firefighters at one of the country's busiest stations say they are clocking hundreds of hours in emergency overtime while struggling with faulty equipment, long hours, and a lack of trauma training.

A new synthetic drug has been found for the first time in New Zealand with feedback that it caused extreme anxiety for a user.

A young woman who was homeless for years says critics of social housing don't know what it's like to be on the streets in the middle of winter.