Meet soul sisters Lynsey and Norma Hayward

Last updated 12 June 2026

MAS Member Lynsey Hayward and her sister-in-law Norma talk about their special bond and how they support each other during their busy lives.

Lynsey and Norma Hayward are sisters-in-law, cherished friends and proud champions of each other’s impressive endeavours. Both originally from the UK, they have each built their careers and raised their children here in New Zealand, along the way providing love, laughter and support as they navigate life a long way from home.

Early days

Lynsey: I trained as a doctor in the UK, then came over to New Zealand and got inspired to do obstetrics and gynaecology. I’ve worked at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland as a consultant since 2001, and along the way I’ve had 3 children, taking some time out with each of them. I now work half the time in public and half in private practice, and I specialise in pelvic floor disorders in women. 

I really enjoy working with the women of South Auckland, many of whom don’t have a lot. They often present late with urinary and prolapse issues and they’ve suffered greatly, to the point that they don’t leave home or socialise, or it’s impacted their ability to work. Being able to help them and improve their quality of life is something I really love.  

Alongside my day job, I became involved with the International Urogynaecology Association (IUGA), eventually becoming its President. The society has members in 93 countries, which has given me a fantastic opportunity to teach and travel. Our foundation, FIUGA, has sustainable fellow training programmes in Ghana, Nepal, Sri Lanka and soon, I hope, Brazil. 

Norma: I started my career in the Civil Service in London, then worked at the Institute of Management in the UK. I was having a career break and travelling in South America when I met Lynsey’s brother Richard in Ecuador. After returning home, we both got itchy feet and decided to come to New Zealand to live and work. We arrived in 1997 and I got a job as an account manager with the New Zealand Institute of Management. We shared a big house with Lynsey and her husband and their baby James, and it was such good fun.  

Lynsey: In that house we had a kitchen with a hatch through to the dining area and we used to post baby James through the hatch. James was a handful and I was studying for big medical exams at the time so having extended family there was amazing. 

Then Norma was also there for my son Chris’ birth. My mum was due to come out to New Zealand, but she was really sick with ovarian cancer. I was 34 weeks’ pregnant when she was diagnosed. Being a gynaecologist, I knew this was a terminal illness. I ended up being induced so I’d be able to go back to the UK. I was so upset about Mum, but Norma, besides working, came along to the birth and then she stayed and helped out with my older 2 children. That was huge. 

Growing families and giving back

Norma: I got pregnant when I was 40 with the first of my 2 daughters and I knew I wanted to be a stay-at-home mum. Having previously studied some psychology, I got interested in what was going on in the brain for little Molly, and I discovered Brainwave and the importance of the first 1000 days of life. This was back in their early days; I went to a presentation and I was hooked! I applied to train as a kaiako (educator). I’m now one of their longest-serving kaiako. 

Nowadays, I do workshops for teen parents, a programme in South Auckland schools for Year 9 students, and I also work in the Auckland prisons. I just love being able to share and discuss this incredible information. It’s great to see parents, from young mums to dads in prisons, start to understand what they might need to be doing with their tamariki. We’re very grateful to have MAS Foundation’s support too. 

Alongside that, I am president of West Auckland Riding for the Disabled and I’ve volunteered there for 22 years. We help about 55 children a week with horse-riding therapy. We assist children with physical and cognitive disabilities, and we also support children who have suffered from maltreatment like abuse, neglect or trauma. These children can have various struggles managing their behaviour, emotions and learning, but they can come and benefit from warm gentle horses and warm gentle people. That can be a big protective factor in their lives. 

Lynsey: What Norma hasn’t said is that she won a NZRDA Volunteer of the Year Award. She has spent more than 10 years fundraising and developed a covered riding facility in Henderson. This has made a massive difference to their operation. That’s been almost a full-time unpaid job, lots of paperwork and determination.