The Daily Vale, Updates, and News Archive

The Daily Vale will provide regular updates on the latest news, developments, reflections from leavers, and blog-type commentary.
The Daily Vale

The Daily Vale

Keep up-to-date with announcements and in-depth blog posts
News Articles

News Articles

View our compilation of newspaper articles from the past to the present
Videos Clips

Videos Clips

Check out these insightful interviews, documentaries and news clips

Latest News

Does Gloriavale have a future?

Does Gloriavale have a future?

: | The Press | Joanne Naish | The conservative West Coast Christian community has had a bad year. It was slated, among others, in the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care’s final report; yet more of its members appeared in court on sexual, physical assault and fraud charges; and this…
Debanking made easier

Debanking made easier

: | Lexology | Simpson Grierson | Banks with unwelcome customers will take heart from the recent decision of the Court of Appeal on the debanking of Gloriavale and its related entities. The decision encouraged a literal interpretation of bank terms and conditions which allowed a bank to exit a customer…
Forest Gold Honey in liquidation

Forest Gold Honey in liquidation

: | The Press | Sinead Gill | A West Coast honey producer owes over $1 million after weaker than anticipated sales and failing to find trained staff. Forest Gold Honey is insolvent and has voluntarily entered liquidation, according to a report published by Christchurch liquidator Brenton Hunt on December 3.…
School under ERO watch

School under ERO watch

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills |Subscription Only Education specialists have been working with Gloriavale School, with a fresh review due. The school needs to pass the review in order to keep its funding. The Education Review Office visited last October and found the private school was not providing an…
Govt still looking into Gloriavale India outpost

Govt still looking into Gloriavale India outpost

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | Various government agencies are still looking into the Gloriavale Christian Community’s outpost in India. In the TVNZ ‘docuseries’ Escaping Utopia, which screened in March, former Gloriavale members visited a lady who moved to India seven years ago and now has six children. She was among five women…
Gloriavale focus of abuse report

Gloriavale focus of abuse report

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | The Abuse in Care Royal Commission recommendations include steps that would prevent someone like Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian — who returned to lead the community after being jailed for sex offending — from ever happening again. The inquiry’s 3000-page final report, released yesterday, estimated 200,000…
Assault charges denied

Assault charges denied

: | Greymouth Star | A Gloriavale man and former teacher inside the Lake Haupiri Christian community has denied 14 charges of assaulting boys with blunt weapons. Vigilant Standtrue, 42, filed pleas of not guilty on all charges in the Greymouth District Court, electing a trial by jury. Name suppression lapsed…
Police spend on Gloriavale ticks up

Police spend on Gloriavale ticks up

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills |Subscription Only Police have spent over a quarter of a million dollars on Gloriavale, and are one of just 10 Government agencies involved in the under-pressure community at Lake Haupiri. The Greymouth Star revealed last month the likes of the police, Health NZ and…
Youth event lined up

Youth event lined up

: | Greymouth Star | Ariana Stewart | Subscription Only David Ready escaped Gloriavale. Twins, Tane Mahuta and Te Akaraupo Heke Pakeha, are survivors of family violence. Pania Tepaiho-Marsh started hunting for her own mental health and now leads hunting excursions for women in need. They are just three of the…
Gloriavale appeal allowed

Gloriavale appeal allowed

: | Greymouth Star | Gloriavale Christian Community has been granted permission to appeal an Employment Court ruling that found girls were employees and entitled to minimum entitlements. Last year, the court ruled that six former Gloriavale women had actually been employees working under punishing conditions for years on end at…
Inquiry into Gloriavale’s India sect

Inquiry into Gloriavale’s India sect

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | A cross-agency group is working to establish facts about the Gloriavale Christian Community’s outpost in India. In the recent TVNZ ‘docuseries’, Escaping Utopia, former Gloriavale members Theophila Pratt and Rosanna Overcomer travelled to India and met with Mr Pratt’s sister Precious. Precious moved…
Have you forgotten Gloriavale already?

Have you forgotten Gloriavale already?

: | The Press | Dennis Gates | Dennis Gates is a lawyer and member of the legal team fighting for the people of Gloriavale. OPINION: It’s been a few weeks since TV’s Escaping Utopia brought the terrible thing that is Gloriavale into our living rooms once again. Is the outcry and horror still…
Gloriavale payments ‘challenging’

Gloriavale payments ‘challenging’

: | Greymouth Star | The Employment Court says working out how much money Gloriavale leavers are owed may be challenging. The court recently ruled that Hosea Courage, Daniel Pilgrim, and Levi Courage were actually employees, clearing the way for them to pursue claims in the Employment Relations Authority for compensation,…
Gloriavale Visit With The Road To Healing Aotearoa

Gloriavale Visit With The Road To Healing Aotearoa

: | Answers Within | YouTube | A poignant visual representation to raise awareness of the victims who have suffered within the Gloriavale Community. Flags are placed on the driveway into Gloriavale, representing the survivors, the voiceless of Gloriavale. Official numbers released by Police indicate 400 offences with 3/4 of those…
Hot Picks: Escaping Utopia

Hot Picks: Escaping Utopia

: | Broadcast | ‘As a contemporary cult story, this is unlike anything I have ever seen’ Distributor Fifth SeasonProducer Warner Bros International Television Production New ZealandLength 3 x 60 minutesBroadcaster TVNZ (New Zealand) Into the thriving sub-genre of documentaries about cults comes Escaping Utopia, a three-part exposé of the Gloriavale  Christian Community, which operates on New Zealand’s South Island. Co-director Natalie Malcon is no…
‘Bureaucracy’ rejected

‘Bureaucracy’ rejected

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | The Government says another layer of bureaucracy is not needed at Gloriavale. It emerged recently that a Gloriavale West Coast Stakeholder Group, which included police, Work Safe NZ and Oranga Tamariki, had been disbanded. However, Gloriavale said last week it was working to…
Some Christian reflections on Gloriavale

Some Christian reflections on Gloriavale

: | NZ Christian Network | Dr Stuart Lange | The current TV series Escaping Utopia is somewhat sensationalist and has its own biases, but it has usefully highlighted some serious issues in the Gloriavale Christian Community. Many secular New Zealanders may wonder if Gloriavale is what all Christians are like.…
Gloriavale still working with Govt

Gloriavale still working with Govt

: | Greymouth Star | Subscription Only| ‘All members have bank accounts’ Gloriavale says it is still working with numerous agencies, and its priority is ensuring its children are well cared for. The community has been back in the spotlight this week, thanks to a new documentary on Tv One. It…
Gloriavale leaders say changes are happening

Gloriavale leaders say changes are happening

: | The Press | Joanne Naish | The son of Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian is calling on the Government to work with the victims, not just the leadership. The community’s leaders have issued a statement saying it is continuing to comply with key outcomes set by an all-of-Government taskforce which was…
Escaping Utopia part 2: ‘She’s not safe here’

Escaping Utopia part 2: ‘She’s not safe here’

: | Stuff | Amberleigh Jack | RECAP: Before opening credits even begin to roll, part two of the new Gloriavale documentary hits with a brutal insight into lives within of the South Island Christian community. It’s a difficult, uncomfortable watch, that’s even tougher to turn away from. Through off-camera commentary, the viewer is…
Justin Pemberton: Escaping Utopia director explores the inner workings of Gloriavale through interviews with escapees

Justin Pemberton: Escaping Utopia director explores the inner workings of Gloriavale through interviews with escapees

: | Newstalk ZB |The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin Description The insular Greymouth community of Gloriavale has kept Kiwis enthralled as testimonies keep emerging. A new TVNZ documentary, Escaping Utopia, promises to unveil the stories of people who’ve left the community- and the struggles they’ve endured. Co-director Justin Pemberton says Gloriavale…
Less Govt oversight for Gloriavale community

Less Govt oversight for Gloriavale community

: | 1 News | Ryan Boswell | Former Workplace Relations Minister Michael Wood wants an all-of-government response to the controversial Gloriavale community. He said the leadership of the sect has “not acted in a way that creates an environment of trust”. A previously mandated joint response ended last December. Ministry…
Gloriavale: New testaments from cult survivors

Gloriavale: New testaments from cult survivors

: | The Listener | Russell Baillie | Subscription Only Escaping Utopia is another documentary about Gloriavale, the religious community that has attracted prying cameras for decades. But its makers say the three-part series finally tells the whole story. When Natalie Malcon made Heaven and Hell – The Centrepoint Story, her devastating award-winning…
Gloriavale ‘expose’ to screen worldwide

Gloriavale ‘expose’ to screen worldwide

: |Greymouth Star| Subscription Only | A new three-part investigation into Gloriavale will screen on TV One later this month. The brand-new docuseries — Escaping Utopia — is fronted by journalist Melanie Reid, who went undercover there in 1994. “I have done hundreds of television stories in the last two decades but this…
Gloriavale’s surplus declines

Gloriavale’s surplus declines

: | Greymouth Star |Subscription Only|Laura Mills Gloriavale’s charitable trust has reported a $766,000 surplus for the year. That is well down on a $3.4m surplus recorded last year, and $2.29m before that. Total income was $15.8m, compared to $27m last year. It had revenue of almost $16m, administration costs of $893,000…
Cell coverage comes to Gloriavale

Cell coverage comes to Gloriavale

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | Subscription Only The Gloriavale Christian Community is going to get a cellphone signal for the first time at its remote site inland of Nelson Creek. The Rural Connectivity Group (RCG) has applied to the Grey District Council to install a cell tower near Lake Haupiri.…
School under ministry watch

School under ministry watch

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills The Ministry of Education says it is meeting regularly with the Gloriavale School staff following a highly critical Education Review Office report threw doubt on its registration as a private school. Gloriavale Christian School has a roll of 139. However, ERO said almost 20%…
Former Gloriavale members seeking compensation believed to be in the millions

Former Gloriavale members seeking compensation believed to be in the millions

: By Jean Edwards | RNZ | A group of nine former Gloriavale members found to have been employees have lodged an Employment Relations Authority claim against the Christian community for lost wages and compensation believed to total $5.2 million. Supporters of the six women and three men are calling for…
Gloriavale’s annus horribilis

Gloriavale’s annus horribilis

: By Laura Mills | Greymouth Star: Article Online | 18 December 2023 The Gloriavale Christian Community has been under siege all year, with a raft of legal action ongoing into 2024. It is waiting to hear whether it has been granted leave to appeal an Employment Court decision, upheld last…
Man damages pink church

Man damages pink church

: | Greymouth Star | Subscription only: Greymouth Star A former Gloriavale man admitted damaging Blaketown’s ‘pink church’ — a gay celebration — when he appeared in the Greymouth District Court yesterday. Redeemed Standfast, 19, who left the Gloriavale Christian Community a year ago, was supported in court by his father…
Major Gloriavale investigation finds 138 potential abuse victims, dozens of suspected offenders

Major Gloriavale investigation finds 138 potential abuse victims, dozens of suspected offenders

: Blair Ensor | Stuff | A major police investigation into abuse at Gloriavale has identified more than 100 potential victims of crimes spanning about four decades, Stuff can reveal. The previously undisclosed and ongoing investigation, dubbed Operation Mathius, began in 2021, and followed another investigation that brought to light offending involving 60 people at…
Hundreds of suspected crimes uncovered at Gloriavale

Hundreds of suspected crimes uncovered at Gloriavale

: Blair Ensor | Stuff | A major police investigation into abuse at Gloriavale has identified more than 100 potential victims of crimes spanning about four decades, Stuff can reveal. The previously undisclosed and ongoing investigation, dubbed Operation Mathius, began in 2021, and followed another investigation that brought to light offending involving 60…
Gloriavale charitable status review

Gloriavale charitable status review

: Laura Mills | Greymouth Star | A review of Gloriavale’s charitable status is ongoing, Charities Services says. In June, an Employment Court ruling concluded that six former Gloriavale women were not volunteers but unpaid employees at the Christian community at Lake Haupiri. Gloriavale says the judge got it wrong and…
School seeks outside help

School seeks outside help

: By Laura Mills | Greymouth Star | Gloriavale School is looking for teachers from outside the closed community. The Education Review Office has just reported that schooling at Gloriavale is “precarious” and at a lower standard than in State schools. It identified a raft of things that must be fixed…
Work Continues Over Gloriavale

Work Continues Over Gloriavale

: By Joanne Naish | Stuff | A 12-year-old boy at Gloriavale broke his arm reaching into a large washing machine – an incident revealed in documents from the government agencies monitoring the community. The documents were released under the Official Information Act by the all-of-Government response to the remote West…
BNZ cannot dump Gloriavale, for now

BNZ cannot dump Gloriavale, for now

: By Joanne Naish | The Press | BNZ has been ordered to continue providing banking for the Gloriavale Christian Community. The bank’s decision to close Gloriavale’s accounts followed an Employment Court ruling in May last year that found three former members – who began working at the community from age 6 –…
Revealed: Gloriavale leader Howard Temple accused of indecently assaulting 10 girls across more than 20 years: NZ Herald

Revealed: Gloriavale leader Howard Temple accused of indecently assaulting 10 girls across more than 20 years: NZ Herald

: By Sam Sherwood and Carolyne Meng-Yee | NZ Herald | The leader of Christian community Gloriavale is accused of indecently assaulting 10 girls across more than 20 years, it can be revealed. Name suppression lapsed today for Howard Temple, following his appearance in the Greymouth District Court. Court documents allege…
Otira Subway Artwork

Otira Subway Artwork

: West Coast Messenger CHILDREN from Gloriavale Christian School have been getting creative as they fill the Otira railway pedestrian subway with colourful paintings. Students at Lake Brunner School and Springfield School have also had a hand in brightening the subway in preparation for the Otira Tunnel Centennial celebrations on August…
Education Review Office reviewing Gloriavale School after Employment Court case: RNZ

Education Review Office reviewing Gloriavale School after Employment Court case: RNZ

: RNZ Gloriavale School is under review by the Education Review Office, the Ministry of Education has confirmed. Serenity Pilgrim, Anna Courage, Rose Standtrue, Crystal Loyal, Pearl Valor and Virginia Courage took Gloriavale’s leaders to court, arguing they lived in servitude working on the West Coast commune’s domestic teams and were…
Brian Henry: lawyer for former Gloriavale women says the community programmed these women for slavery from birth

Brian Henry: lawyer for former Gloriavale women says the community programmed these women for slavery from birth

: Heather du Plessis-Allan | NewstalkZB | Description: An employment court has vindicated six former Gloriavale women – who today won their employment court battle. These women claimed they were exploited and treated like slaves while they worked on domestic tasks for the community, including preparing food, cooking, cleaning and doing…
‘They lived in fear’: Lawyer on court ruling that Gloriavale women were employees: RNZ

‘They lived in fear’: Lawyer on court ruling that Gloriavale women were employees: RNZ

: Lisa Owen |RNZ Checkpoint| “Relieved and vindicated” That’s the response of six former Gloriavale women found by the court to be employees. Serenity Pilgrim, Anna Courage, Rose Standtrue, Crystal Loyal, Pearl Valor and Virginia Courage took leaders of the christian community to the Employment court arguing they lived in servitude…
Employment Court Judgement

Employment Court Judgement

: IN THE MATTER OF a declaration under s 6(5) of the Employment Relations Act 2000 BETWEEN SERENITY PILGRIM, ANNA COURAGE, ROSE STANDTRUE, CRYSTAL LOYAL,PEARL VALOR AND VIRGINIA COURAGE Plaintiffs AND THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL SUED ON BEHALF OF THE MINISTRY OF BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND EMPLOYMENT, LABOUR INSPECTORATE First Defendant AND HOWARD TEMPLE,…
Gloriavale in court: Leavers win Employment Court case, judge rules women born to work and any choice ‘illusionary’_NZ Herald

Gloriavale in court: Leavers win Employment Court case, judge rules women born to work and any choice ‘illusionary’_NZ Herald

: Anna Leask | NZ Herald | A group of women born and raised at Gloriavale were employees and not volunteers during their time at the secretive Christian community, the Employment Court has ruled. Born into the community at Haupiri on the South Island’s West Coast, the women were “taught from…
Gloriavale leader says former members ‘exaggerated’ their experiences: Stuff

Gloriavale leader says former members ‘exaggerated’ their experiences: Stuff

: By Shannon Redstall | Stuff | A lawyer for Gloriavale has suggested the women who are arguing they should have been recognised as employees of the secretive Christian community “exaggerated” their experiences. The long-running case centres around whether six former Gloriavale members should be considered employees for the “slave-like” conditions…
Crown knew details of Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian’s sex crimes in mid-90s, lawyer tells Employment Court: RNZ

Crown knew details of Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian’s sex crimes in mid-90s, lawyer tells Employment Court: RNZ

: By Jean Edwards | RNZ | The Crown had detailed knowledge of Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian’s crimes in the mid-1990s but “dropped the ball” by failing to help the community deal with sexual abuse, the Employment Court has heard. Two Court of Appeal judgments tendered in a case brought by…
Gloriavale: Details of crimes committed by founder Hopeful Christian made public for first time

Gloriavale: Details of crimes committed by founder Hopeful Christian made public for first time

: By Jean Edwards | Radio NZ | Gloriavale founder Hopeful Christian was jailed for cruel and bizarre sexual offending under the guise of education or preparation for marriage, court documents show. Full details of Christian’s crimes have publicly emerged for the first time, after being tendered in an Employment Court case…
Employment relationship in ‘direct conflict with our religious beliefs’-Gloriavale member: RNZ

Employment relationship in ‘direct conflict with our religious beliefs’-Gloriavale member: RNZ

: By Jean Edwards |RNZ Reporter | Employment relationships at Gloriavale would be in direct conflict with the Christian community’s religious beliefs, a founding member says. Serenity Valor told an Employment Court hearing Gloriavale had no intention of denying people their legal rights and the community believed it was complying with…
A Gloriavale resident has claimed she’s being discriminated against because she’s a woman, a Christian, and lives at the West Coast commune.

A Gloriavale resident has claimed she’s being discriminated against because she’s a woman, a Christian, and lives at the West Coast commune.

: 1 News | Priscilla Stedfast, who was born at Gloriavale, is giving evidence at the Employment Court case which is deciding whether six former members were employees or volunteers. Virginia Courage, Pearl Valor, Serenity Pilgrim, Rose Standtrue, Anna Courage and Crystal Loyal claim they were made to work long hours…
I love my life at Gloriavale: Leavers’ claims are nonsense, exaggerated, offensive says life member

I love my life at Gloriavale: Leavers’ claims are nonsense, exaggerated, offensive says life member

: By Anna Leask | NZ Herald | A Gloriavale mother of seven has slammed evidence given by women who left the community, saying their accounts of working conditions and their lives are incorrect, highly exaggerated, unrealistic and offensive. And she says the “misleading” information about Gloriavale is hugely impacting the…
‘Gloriavale: New Zealand’s Secret Cult’: Doc On Notorious Religious Group Lands Sales Deal Ahead Of EFM

‘Gloriavale: New Zealand’s Secret Cult’: Doc On Notorious Religious Group Lands Sales Deal Ahead Of EFM

: By Zac Ntim | International Reporter | Deadline EXCLUSIVE: MetFilm Sales has acquired world rights, excluding Australia and New Zealand, to Gloriavale: New Zealand’s Secret Cult, Fergus Grady and Noel Smyth’s feature doc about a notorious kiwi religious cult. MetFilm will shop the doc to international buyers at the upcoming European Film Market. Billed…
Gloriavale site visit planned for Chief Employment Court Judge during next phase of ‘servitude’ trial between leavers and Christian community

Gloriavale site visit planned for Chief Employment Court Judge during next phase of ‘servitude’ trial between leavers and Christian community

: By Anna Leask | NZ Herald | The judge presiding over an Employment Court trial between Gloriavale leavers and the current community will visit the secretive Christian community next month. Last year a group of six women raised in the infamous and isolated West Coast religious group claimed they were effectively…
Should BNZ be forced to bank Gloriavale?

Should BNZ be forced to bank Gloriavale?

: By Jenée Tibshraeny | NZ Herald | A High Court judge is preventing the Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) from ditching Gloriavale as a customer – for now at least. The bank wants to terminate the relationship it’s had with the controversial West Coast-based Christian community for more than 40 years…
Gloriavale workers get first monthly pay, and are asked to give the money back to cover expenses, including $100,000-plus legal bills

Gloriavale workers get first monthly pay, and are asked to give the money back to cover expenses, including $100,000-plus legal bills

: Gloriavale workers who recently received a share of the Christian Community’s profits, were immediately asked to pay it back to cover expenses, including more than $100,000 in legal fees. The $335,000 in expenses for October included administration costs, taxes, vehicle hire, capital spending, with close to 40% going on lawyers…
Gloriavale feeling ‘harassed’

Gloriavale feeling ‘harassed’

: | Greymouth Star | Laura Mills | Gloriavale says it is being harassed and does not know who to turn to. In a statement yesterday to the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care, leaders said the continual call for investigations into their communal life had been traumatic for many of…