This stocktake report was commissioned by the Every Day Communities unit of Child Youth and Family and the Waitakere Anti-Violence Essential Services. The report identifies trends, issues and gaps in child abuse prevention and response services across the Waitakere area., and makes recommendations for improvemen

1. STOCKTAKE OF PREVENTION, EDUCATION AND
FRONTLINE RESPONSES TO CHILD ABUSE IN
WAITAKERE
ISSUES, GAPS AND TRENDS
Conducted for Everyday Communities and Waitakere Anti Violence Essential Services
network (WAVES)
March 2009
Dr. Chris Holland
WERDS
www.werds.co.nz

2. Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ 3
Executive Summary…………………………………………………………………………………..4
Full Report ........................................................................................................................... 10
Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 10
Findings Part One: What‟s happening nationally? ................................................................ 13
Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 13
Current Status of Government and NGO initiatives .............................................................. 15
Findings Part Two: What's happing in Waitakere?..............................................................19
Early childhood support (0-4 years)...................................................................................... 30
The primary school years (5-12 years) ................................................................................. 34
Community Development and neighbourhood strengthening…………………………………. 39
Summary and conclusions………………….………………………………………………………42
Recommendations for in 2009………..…….………………………………………………………44
References……………………………………......………………………………………………….46
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3. Acknowledgements
I wish to acknowledge, all the government, health, community members and community
organisation managers and their staff, and the children who so willingly participated in this
Stocktake. They gave considered and helpful information and comments in relation to the
issues, trends and practices highlighted by the literature and experienced on the ground.
I have been fortunate to have the opportunity of working with a great team. Thanks to Sue
Lytollis EDC for her oversight of the project and to WAVES for their hard work in helping to
get focus groups up and running. I am indebted to the stocktake management group, Kaleti
Moala-Mafi, Tiaria Fletcher, Dr. Peter O‟Connor and Dr. Geoff Bridgman for their helpful
comments.
Special appreciation and thanks go to Bob Newson of the Families Commission, for very
generously guiding and sponsoring of the Maori research, which involved so much of his
time. The experience of working with Bob has definitely been a highlight of this project for
me. I am grateful also to Cheryl Talamaivao for her supporting work with the Pacific focus
group.
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4. Executive Summary
This summary outlines trends, issues, gaps and recommended actions for EDC‟s activity in
Waitakere 2009. The recommendations are drawn from data and analysis presented in the
full report following the summary.
Explanation – Why this Stocktake?
As an evolution of Everyday Communities in Waitakere, it was decided at an EDC Evaluation
meeting in 2008 to move away from the previous pattern of buying media space to advertise
family violence, child abuse prevention information and supporting local events and
resources.
The idea instead, was to find out, from a literature review and key stakeholder interviews,
„What programme or action could make a significant difference for
the children in our community affected by abuse, violence or
neglect.‟
The secondary questions this research was to answer were:
 What specific actions or programmes do you or your agency offer for children affected
by abuse, violence or neglect?
 „Where do you think there are gaps in Waitakere in changing the way society thinks or
works around children exposed to or at risk of abuse, violence or neglect.‟
 Do you have an idea or concept that you think could make a practical and real
difference for children affected by abuse, violence or neglect; or to prevent children
being exposed to abuse, violence or neglect.
EDC also wanted the Stocktake to provide information on three primary strategy areas: early
childhood support (0-4) school support (5-12) and community support. To also discuss
support services in each of these areas, whether government, large community NGO, or a
small „grassroots‟ organisation and to explore trends, issues and gaps in general, including
co-ordination, collaboration and professional capability in terms of early years (home), school
years and community support.
In its previous work in other communities and over the last two years in Waitakere, the EDC
primary prevention strategy has been to support events and radio and print media advertising
campaigns, create resources, and fill educational gaps and network amongst NGO and
government organisations. Apart from the education through drama programme Everyday
Theatre that accompanies EDC in communities, most of the project‟s activities have been
aimed at awareness raising in the community around the prevention of child abuse and
neglect, and, to a much lesser degree, professional development support.
In the following pages of this report, a number of positive trends, but also some issues and
gaps, are indicated with recommendations. Some issues and gaps are already being
addressed in future government and NGO planning and in current initiatives. EDC can make
a contribution to some initiatives, but others are beyond its scope.
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5. Trends in the management of Child Abuse and Neglect reduction
General
 Established NGOs and government favour a multi-agency approach.
 There is good networking and some interlocking of services.
 A few Waitakere services are collaborating well, interacting on a daily basis.
 Some services are contemplating funded joint ventures.
 New Settler organisations are becoming more visible working to forge links.
 Professional development is available for nurses, teachers, and community workers.
Early Childhood
 Services are collaborative, complementary, with generally good referral systems.
 Effective promotion (if overloaded, less deliberate promotion).
 Staff involved have formal qualifications and lengthy experience.
 Programmes are well designed, meet needs and are well received.
 Sliding scales of payment assist those on benefits.
 Range includes separated parents and parents where children had been removed.
 Grandparents Raising Grandchildren (informal).
 Home visiting projects (e.g. Family Start and Parents as First Teachers).
 Some organisations offer a combination of parenting / childcare services.
School
 There are a range of school programmes offered in Waitakere.
 Programmes are directed at children (rather than at their parents).
 Programmes reflect the paramountcy principle (The CY&F Act 1989)
 Programmes are linked to EDC.
 Programmes are professionally developed and delivered.
 There is good coverage of Waitakere schools by some programmes.
 Programmes are well received and complement each other.
Community
 Events bring families together for entertainment, information and awareness.
 Events provide a good opportunity for organisations to promote their services.
 Community Development programmes like Twin Streams, Massey Matters and the
Ranui Action Project build community resourcefulness.
 Promotion of family violence issues – It‟s Not OK, radio, TV – builds awareness.
 Training for official home callers taking place to enable identification of child abuse.
Issues and gaps in the management of child abuse and neglect reduction
General
 The needs to be a central point of contact and an up-to-date directory of all services.
 There are few services that are outside the immediate Henderson area.
 Poor collaboration in some instances, such as among child advocates.
 Less collaboration between large and small NGOs.
 Less collaboration between Maori, Pacific and Pakeha led organisations.
 Referrals across ethnic services are not high.
 Competition among smaller NGOs for short-term funding - funding rolled over for
larger NGOs.
 Professional development (PD) uneven, uncoordinated in government and NGOs.
 Lack of experience in NGOS resulting from a high turnover in the field.
 Training opportunities for more highly skilled and qualified professionals is difficult.
5

6.  Need people with interviewing and assessment skills for the 0-4 age group.
 Smaller NGOs struggle to find funding to support professional development.
 Lack of provider awareness of the range of other services.
 Lack of community awareness of the range of services.
Early Childhood
 In regard to home visiting projects, there are some areas of possible duplication.
 Limited collaboration between home visiting services.
 Some parents are reluctant to engage with services e.g. where CYF are involved.
 Few properly trained community workers to support very young children.
 Insufficient engagement in early education.
 Social Workers in Schools and school counsellors very effective.
Schools
 Need for higher level promotion and co-ordination of programmes across the city.
 Need for higher level promotion and co-ordination within each school.
 To reach new cohorts of students - programmes could be rolled out annually.
 Need for more counsellors appointed to schools.
 Need contact information provided to children.
Community
 Community projects do not provide information to community members on what do if
they witness or suspect abuse.
 An identified “Community” in a city the size of Waitakere can be large and potentially
unmanageable.
Recommended EDC Interventions in 2009
So far, the EDC project has been very effective in supporting media campaigns and events,
and in enabling networking forums that facilitate the exchange of information between service
providers. Some of the issues are largely a factor of the sheer size of Waitakere. It may be
that a community or neighbourhood-wide rather than a city-wide approach would establish a
visible model for future interventions in urban areas of this size. The following is a summary
of suggestions arising from the research, most of which are resource-development focused.
Some might be concentrated in a small community to maximise effect, while others are city
wide.
General:
The main areas identified for development are co-ordination, collaboration and professional
development (PD). Co-ordination and collaboration between local health, education and
community initiatives is likely to improve with the recent appointment of a new WAVES co-
ordinator. Below are the recommendations that have come from the stocktake. It is
acknowledged that not all of these recommendations will fit the broad criteria for use of EDC
funding, however, the EDC Working Party wanted all relevant issues included so that this
document might be able to be utilised by appropriate groups to justify support for these
programmes from other government agencies or funding bodies.
The following are general recommendations for action. Finally, the priority table indicates
those activities which are most supported by the research.
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7. Professional Development
 Providing collaborative tendering funding application workshops.
 Establishing criteria for good collaboration, reviewing the ability of smaller
organisations to meet those criteria and recognising organisations that do.
 Re-instating scholarships for community workers to complete formal professional
development.
 Funding the establishment of mentors and supervisors for community workers.
 Producing a hard copy and web-based calendar of professional development
opportunities across a range of organisations.
 Creating a phone and website “consult-line” (linked by mobile/email/text message to a
child advocate or similar) where teachers, nurses, doctors and community workers
could ask on-the-spot questions.
 Cross-posting data to the “consult line” internet site and the WAVES website.
 Funding language specific mainstream media messages.
Early Childhood:
EDC resources could support existing parent training and home visiting programmes via
information to parents about local support and alternatives to smacking.
 Creating a web-map of early childhood service provision, parent education and early
childhood education programmes.
 Creating a hard copy directory of early childhood services including parenting courses,
home visiting and early childhood education (ECE) with attached information about the
repeal of section 59 and helpful hints like “21 practical alternatives to smacking” to be
given away at hospitals, clinics, and by home visitors.
School:
Demonstrating the paramountcy of children means showing respect for children and young
people, listening to them, and informing them about next steps. This might include:
 Producing accessible hard copy wallet cards for students, explaining steps in
dealing with abuse and information about what agencies they can contact for help.
 Producing a hard copy clear language leaflet / poster that explains the repeal of
section 59 and what that means in terms of protection and support (similar to the
“21 alternatives to smacking).
 Establishing a child-help website providing the information above and discussion/
Frequently Asked Question areas.
 Rewarding young person groups (e.g. in schools) that have developed an
effective support strategy for children in the school or neighbourhood.
 Producing an information booklet for teachers/people working with children re age
appropriate child abuse prevention education opportunities available in Waitakere.
Include a contact list and planning calendar.
 Producing an information leaflet for teachers on handling disclosures, listening
and supporting children who seek their help, confidentiality, referral steps and
likely outcomes.
 Media promotion of schools (e.g. in local newspapers, TV) that have an ongoing
child abuse prevention / education strategy.
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8. Community:
It may be that projects like Massey Matters, Twin Streams and the Ranui Action Project, or
others like them, can increase their focus on encouraging more watchful and active
neighbourhoods, in order to reduce „bystander apathy‟. Possibilities include:
 Supporting small neighbourhood-based meeting / education opportunities that
include extended family and neighbours.
 Creating a large poster map (A1) of service provision with contact number
leaflets, for local libraries, community centres, clubs, bus stops, pubs.
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9. Priorities for Action
Professional Development Collaboration Co-ordination
Early Produce an information Create a hard copy directory of early
childhood booklet for teachers/people childhood services including parenting
working with children on age courses, home visiting and early
appropriate child abuse childhood education (ECE) with
prevention education attached information about the repeal of
opportunities available in section 59 and helpful hints like “21
Waitakere. practical alternatives to smacking.” To
be given away at hospitals, clinics, and
Include a contact list and by home visitors.
planning calendar.
School Produce an information Produce accessible hard copy wallet
booklet for teachers/people cards for intermediate level students,
working with intermediate explaining steps in dealing with abuse
1
level children re child abuse and information about what agencies
prevention education they can contact for help
opportunities available in
Waitakere. Include a contact
list and planning calendar
Produce an information
leaflet for teachers on
handling disclosures,
listening and supporting
children who seek their help,
confidentiality, referral steps
and likely outcomes.
Comm- Funding the establishment of Creating a Produce a hard copy and web-based
unity mentors and supervisors for phone and calendar of professional development
community workers website “consult- opportunities across a range of
line” (linked by organisations.
mobile/email/text
message to a Funding language specific mainstream
child advocate media messages.
or similar) where Creating a large poster map (A1) of
teachers, service provision with contact number
nurses, doctors leaflets for local libraries, community
and community centres, clubs, bus stops, pubs.
workers could
ask on-the-spot
questions
1
In using the above table to determine future activities by EDC, it should be noted that MSD
itself has prioritised the targeting of early childhood and intermediate level children.
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10. Full Report
Introduction
EDC was developed by the Child, Youth and Family Public Awareness and Education team
in mid-2001 in response to a number of high profile child deaths. It works alongside selected
communities to create localised responses to the prevention of child abuse and neglect and
family violence using social marketing and community action processes. It was piloted in
Whakatane and has also been in Wairarapa, Whanganui, Northland and with Pacific
communities of South Auckland and greater Wellington.
The EDC partnership is for three years and is administered by a strategic alliance between
the Public Awareness and Education Team with an umbrella community organisation (e.g.
Amokura in Northland and Waitakere Anti Violence Essential Services Network in Waitakere)
and an EDC Working Party of community and government representatives is introduced to
shape the direction of the programme of action.
EDC began development in Waitakere in 2006 with the adoption of a Charter and formally
launched on April 28, 2007. How to distribute a budget for prevention purposes is part of the
CYF relationship with WAVES and the Working Party. Initial EDC activities included creating
events, radio and print media advertising campaigns, creating resources and filling
educational gaps and networking amongst NGO and Government organisations. EDC‟s
overarching brand is „hui tahi, tupu tahi (come together, grow together)‟. In Waitakere,
funding has been provided for a radio campaign on Radio Waatea, Radio Network and
Pacific stations, interviews on Triangle TV, public advertising screens, print media ads and a
range of resources such as tee-shirts, eco bags and calendars. EDC has contributed to the
creation of two Scholarships at a Tertiary learning institute, and training for EDC Working
Party members. It has supported and funded community events like Toddler Day Out,
Tamariki Ora, Te Ra o te Mokopuna and the White Ribbon Day march.
As stated earlier, rather than follow the pattern of the last two years an evaluation meeting of
the EDC Working Party on 7th May 2008 decided to focus on what project or projects might
make a significant difference for children affected by abuse, violence or neglect. A later
meeting determined the process for „Knowing what we don‟t know‟ Stocktake of literature and
key informant interviews which has resulted in this report.
A Special Stocktake Group will determine which of the recommendations of this report will be
supported for the funds set aside for the 1 July 2008 – 30 June 09 financial year as well as a
final contribution for July – December 2009.
This Stocktake was undertaken to find out about what child abuse information, research,
child abuse prevention services and child abuse response services are available in the
Waitakere region, and to inform EDC how best to proceed during its remaining time in
Waitakere in order to improve outcomes for children. Issues already identified by EDC were:
 That it is difficult to have an impact on a city the size of Waitakere
 That there are a disparities and gaps in Waitakere in terms of addressing
child abuse
Key stakeholder interviews focused on the service type provided by each organisation
(primary, secondary, tertiary) and target group (parents, children, home, school, community).
The semi-structured interview schedule, drawing on the literature and previous interviews,
mainly covered interviewee roles, inter-organisational co-ordination, collaboration and referral
networks, professional development, programmes, funding, issues, gaps and
recommendations.
10

11. Waitakere Anti-Violence Essential Services (WAVES) coordinates the network of Family
Violence Services in Waitakere; provides project management; strategic planning, sourcing
of funds for projects, policy advice and acts as a Clearinghouse for information sharing.
WAVES co-ordinated a management group for the stocktake, and has provided
administrative and other support to the researcher. The management group met monthly for
the duration of the stocktake. Comprised of academics, managers and professional working
in the area, they included Tiaria Fletcher, Manager, WAVES; Kaleti Moala-Mafi, Senior
Advisor Public Awareness & Education Team, CYF and Sue Lytollis Team Leader; Dr. Peter
O‟Connor, Director, Applied Theatre Consultants; Dr Geoff Bridgman, Associate Head of
School, School of Community Development, UNITEC.
Layout of the report
Through a search of the literature and related websites, part one of the report outlines some
historical and current issues and developments in the field in New Zealand. Part two
discusses trends, issues, and gaps in Waitakere, with reference to voices from the
community. Issues around provision for different ages groups (0-4; 5-12) are discussed, as
well as those effecting different ethnicities.
Research process
As Silverman (1997) and Fine & Sandstrom (1988) note, the social distance created by
studying groups with whom we do not share membership (i.e. age, gender, class, ethnicity)
can create mistrust, misunderstanding or resistance on the part of the research participant.
Waitakere has an ethnically mixed population. Mainly Pakeha (59%), the region is also home
to a high percentage of Maori (13%) and Pacific peoples (15%). A significant number of
people from Asian (16%) African and Eastern European peoples also live in the city (2006
census results for Waitakere, http://www.waitakere.govt.nz/abtcit/ps/2006census.asp). With
this in mind, the research was concerned to observe culturally appropriate practices.
In terms of research with Maori participants, it drew on the work of Linda Tuhiwai Smith
(1999), who is one of the foremost leaders and designers of Kaupapa Maori research. In
Decolonising Methodologies, Smith emphasises that what is important is not the ethnicity of
the researcher, but how the research is conducted. One of the models she suggests for
Pakeha researchers is a tiaki or mentoring model, where authoritative Maori people guide
and sponsor the research. We were fortunate that Bob Newson, a respected Kaumatua who
has worked with the Human Rights Commission, the Families Commission and numerous
other community-service organisations, agreed to support the research. The model was also
used with the Pacific Island focus group, with EDC representative Kaleti Moana-Mafi as
support person.
Data gathering and informed consent
The literature was sourced from a search of the internet, material held by members of the
research management team, a search of public and university library catalogues and material
supplied by EDC and respondents. Most of the literature comes from New Zealand, with
some focusing on Waitakere. The literature included government agency, public service
provider and community reports, website information, and academic analysis.
The research sought a Waitakere-wide response. Data was gathered from four focus groups
and 22 key informants. The research objectives were explained to all respondents. In
addition, they were shown written information about the research (appendix A). Consent was
gained through a written form (appendix B) which explained that respondents would not be
identified in the report and that withdrawal from the research could take place at any time
11

12. during the research. All focus groups and key informant interviews were digitally recorded,
coded and transcribed. All information was provided in good faith to assist the EDC working
party‟s decision making, to provide a document which could be used by the wider community
for further developmental purposes and should not be used for any other purpose.
Drever (1995) notes that dialogue with participants about the interpretations and
explanations emerging from the research should be an integral part of any action research.
Semi-structured interview schedules were based on literature and web-site searches, and
later on issues emerging from early interviews. Participants were provided with an
opportunity to reflect on the research and on each other‟s comments.
Analysis
A pattern analysis (Altrichter 1993) was undertaken with the literature and emerging empirical
data, which enabled the research project to reach a deeper understanding of issues, trends
and gaps. Key themes were established and verified by later readings and interviews. These
themes are discussed in the summary sections of Part One and Two
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13. Findings Part One: What‟s happening nationally?
Introduction
Child abuse is the physical, emotional / psychological or sexual harm caused to a child or
young person. Harm includes ill-treatment, abuse, neglect or deprivation. Physical abuse
involves a deliberately inflicted injury (e.g. bruises, cuts, fractures, burns). Emotional /
psychological abuse is “…any act or omission that results in impaired psychological, social,
intellectual and / or emotional functioning and development” (OCC / UNICEF, 2004:20) (e.g.
rejection, isolation, deprivation of affection, criticism, threats, exposure to family violence,
corruption). Sexual abuse is the sexual exploitation of a child e.g. voyeurism, inappropriate
touching, sex, pornographic activity. (OCC / UNICEF, 2004). The MSD review of research on
Preventing Physical and Psychological Maltreatment of Children in Families states:
While psychological abuse of children can occur without physical
abuse, physical abuse is almost always accompanied by
psychological abuse. There are some common harmful and far-
reaching consequences associated with both psychological and
physical abuse of children such as learning impairments, mental
health and social relationship difficulties. There are also a set of
distinct consequences that can follow from each type of abuse.
Psychological abuse increases the risk of emotional damage, for
example to self esteem, while physical abuse is more strongly
associated with externalising behaviours and aggression. (MSD,
2008: 4)
New Zealand has high rates of child abuse and child deaths (Williamson and Drumm, 2005),
and in 2003 had one of the highest child-death rates in the OECD (UNICEF, 2003). In 2000
and 2001 eighteen children were victims of homicide. In 2003 116 were hospitalised as a
result of assault (Fanslow, 2005:15). New Zealand has 1.2 deaths per 100,000 children. The
OECD median is .6 deaths per 100,000 children (UNICEF, 2003). Mark Loper, head of the
Rotorua CIB, comments that there are many children like Nia Glassie who do not die, but
whose injuries may be as horrific (NZ Herald, November 22 2008). Risk factors for child
abuse include partner violence, adult with history of child or animal abuse, adult child-abuse
survivor, drug or alcohol abuse, mental illness, harsh attitudes to discipline, unrealistic
expectation of children, use of physical punishment, very young parents, social isolation,
mobility of residence, child disabled or chronically ill, severe economic disadvantage (OCC /
UNICEF, 2004:23). Children with multiple adverse experiences face the highest risk of later
adverse outcomes to their physical and social wellbeing (Fergusson and Horwood, 2001,
cited in Fanslow 2005).
Quoting the World Health Organisation / ISPCAN publication of 2006, the MSD review of
research claims that “…social and cultural norms that support violence and physical
punishment of children and that diminish the status of the child in parent-child relationships
have a part to play in contributing to child maltreatment (WHO/ISPCAN, 2006, cited in MSD,
2008:3). They add that while physical punishment does not automatically lead to abuse,
abuse tends to co-occur with disciplinary action. In addition, child abuse is more prevalent
among certain age groups. The 2008 MSD review of research states that:
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14. While children of all ages can experience physical and psychological abuse, babies, toddlers
and adolescents from the age of 11 years old are at a higher risk of being injuring from
physical abuse than primary school-aged children. (MSD, 2008:4)
This seems to suggest that EDC support for services should be targeted at pre-schoolers and
intermediate school aged children. Indeed, may programmes supported by EDC do focus on
the parents of very young children and on programmes for children in middle primary and
intermediate level schooling.
The MSD research review (2008) claims that “…the prevalence of child maltreatment is
higher in deprived families and communities than in well-resourced families and communities
(MSD, 2008:4). Along similar lines, Fanslow‟s research suggests that child abuse is more
prevalent in populations where poverty, low levels of education and unstable family
environments exist. The United Nations Secretary General‟s Study of Violence against
Children points out that Maori children are known to be significantly over-represented in
poverty statistics and twice as likely to be assessed as abused or neglected. (UN, 2006, cited
in Langford, 2006). It can be too easy to draw quick conclusions about the links between
poverty and abuse. Fanslow emphasises that the conditions themselves are not predictors of
abuse (Fanslow, 2005), as child maltreatment2 pervades all socio-economic groups and
ethnicities. For example, although Maori and Pacific people tend to have comparatively low
levels of education and health, and high levels of poverty within particular populations, the
Labour Minister for Maori Affairs points out, ninety-nine percent of Maori families love, nurture
and cherish their children. He acknowledges, however that there is a risk for some struggling
families that must be heeded:
…there are a small proportion of our families which carry out
horrific abuse and there‟s no excuse for that. Poverty, coupled
with the impact of social dislocation and a lack of self-worth on
behalf of parents contributes to this terrible tolerance of abuse.
But we can‟t allow this to continue. (Launch of Ngati Kahungunu
Iwi Violence Project, 23 August 2008)
2
The general term ‘maltreatment’ is now used in the literature to cover the range of adult behaviours that can
cause psychological and physical injury to children. Child maltreatment covers physical, psychological and sexual
abuse, and neglect (MSD, 2008:4)
14

15. Current Status of Government and NGO Initiatives
Child abuse / maltreatment in New Zealand are generally addressed within a family violence
framework (although this is changing). The thrust of current government promotions of the
issue, is that bystander apathy cannot continue - family violence / child abuse is the
responsibility of both the perpetrators and witnesses:
…as New Zealanders, we have a collective responsibility to end
family violence in our country…Those who commit violence
should not be protected by friends, family, or neighbours. That is
not loyalty. It is harbouring criminality…We also need to challenge
those in our families and communities who are violent towards
their family members to seek help; to recognise that it is OK to
admit that what they are doing is wrong; to recognise that it is
hurting their family, their community and themselves; and to
recognise that it is possible to make the change to non-violence
(Helen Clarke, Launch of Campaign for Action on Family Violence,
4 Sept. 2007)
Key national agencies in child abuse prevention
A joined-up government agency approach, led by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD)
includes the Families Commission (FC), the Accident Compensation Commission, (ACC) the
Ministry of Health (MOH) The Peace Foundation and the New Zealand Police (NZP). In 2002,
the government launched the “Agenda for Children” which was a commitment to making life
better for children by reducing family violence. It developed a national framework for family
violence prevention, Te Rito, in 2004.
The Ministry of Social Development established the government Taskforce for Action on
Violence within Families in June 2005, to advise the Family Violence Ministerial Team on
how to make improvements to the way family violence is addressed. The taskforce includes
Maori and Pacific reference groups. At the August 2008 taskforce meeting, it agreed to make
child maltreatment prevention a strategic priority for 2008 – 2011. It agreed the scope (child
abuse and neglect), the focus (prevention) and the priorities for its actions. It also agreed
work with communities to strengthen their preventive responses to child maltreatment. Work
is now focussed on getting projects up and running.
The Families Commission launched the Campaign for Action on Family Violence in
September 2007, with the It‟s Not OK media campaign. The campaign raises awareness of
child abuse in the whole community and thereby has a potential effect not only on
perpetrators but also on bystanders. Indeed, surveys have shown that the campaign has had
some impact on people‟s consciousness and actions. According to the Taskforce for Action
on Violence within Families Ongoing Programme of Action: Monitoring Report September
2008, the Are you OK? 0800 telephone line continues to provide information and support to
over 600 callers per month. New resources will be developed in the next phase of the
campaign that focuses specifically on child maltreatment. There has been some criticism
voiced about the campaign. One criticism of the campaign is that Pacific celebrities used in
the promotions are considered questionable role models for non-violence within their
communities. The same criticism was levelled at Robyn Malcolm, playing Cheryl West in
Outrageous Fortune, who had slapped her on-screen daughter. A Maori respondent
commented that the It‟s Not OK campaign has no Maori women. She pointed out the
dilemma that although women should be shown, they don‟t want to be seen as just victims
either. A third criticism is that children are “left out of the conversation”:
15

16. Other inter-agency initiatives include Strengthening Families (coordinated support for families
with children who are working with two or more government or community agencies), and
Child Advocates (established by MSD and located in a range of community organisations).
The MSD‟s Child Youth and Family (CYF) agency is committed to the paramountcy of
children as defined in the Children‟s Act, 1989. Taking a facilitative, non-mandatory,
differential response orientation to the prevention of child abuse, the MSD states that it is
keen to work with communities and community NGOs already working in the area.
Many of the notifications that come to us turn out to be families
that don‟t need our involvement but would benefit from
community-based support and services. Differential response
helps us link families with social services earlier and in a more
structured way. By connecting families to services that will help
them resolve issues earlier, we hope to prevent more serious
problems occurring down the track. (www.cyf.govt.nz)
Despite this approach, community workers report that CYF still struggles to win the support of
the community. One respondent points out that this is not necessarily CYF‟s fault, as people
are aware of the consequences and therefore the “huge decision, responsibility” of alerting
the agency. The agency is working hard to gain the trust of the community:
People have zero concept of [CYF] as a support agency. I say to
them that we are here to support you, work with you.
More positive engagement with the community over the last few years has resulted from the
establishment of funding streams such as the Strategies with Kids – Information for Parents
(SKIP) initiative, which supports programmes aimed at developing positive parenting skills.
Finance for this and other like initiatives is facilitated through a Local Initiatives Fund (LIF)
which supports collaborative and innovative ways of promoting positive parenting to parents
and caregivers of birth to five year olds. In addition, the CYF established “Everyday
Communities” (EDC) project works alongside Maori, Pacific and mainstream organisations,
local councils, hospitals, schools, established national NGOs and local service providers (all
of which may have their own child abuse prevention strategies).
Primary Secondary and Tertiary responses
Service providers can engage with either primary, secondary and tertiary prevention
strategies, or a mix of all. The on-line mental health service athealth.com makes the following
distinctions between the three types of service provision:
Primary prevention activities are directed at the general population
with the goal of stopping the occurrence of maltreatment before it
starts. Secondary prevention activities target families at high risk of
maltreatment to alleviate conditions associated with the problem.
Tertiary prevention directs services to families where maltreatment
has occurred to reduce the negative consequences of the
maltreatment and to prevent its recurrence.
(www.athealth.com/Consumer/issues/AbusePrev )
Primary strategies can be long (e.g. educational resource development) or short term (e.g.
media campaigns). Secondary strategies might include monitoring and support of families by
NGOS, where the family is referred to a local Strengthening Families co-ordinator who keeps
the family safe and connected with those who are best placed to support them. Tertiary
strategies involve CYF, police and the courts, and may include the removal of children from
16

17. abusive environments. Both public and community organisations engage in primary,
secondary and tertiary strategies within a range of sites, including hospitals, homes, early
childhood centres, primary, intermediate and high schools, churches and community houses.
In terms of secondary and tertiary categories of abuse, it is CYF, the NZ Police, and
community organisations who shoulder most of the work.
Awareness raising
Another approach to education and prevention is through the media public awareness
campaigns. Fanslow reports that in the Netherlands, a campaign including a televised
documentary, short films, commercials, a radio programme and printed materials resulted in
increased levels of disclosure but that the effect on rates of child abuse had not been
established (Fanslow, 2005). Public awareness campaigns in New Zealand began in the mid-
late 1990s with the Breaking the Cycle campaign and a sideline campaign “alternatives to
smacking” have included various anti-smacking messages, and, more recently, the “It‟s not
OK” programme.
Health professionals and child abuse awareness training
It is not only community NGO‟s who need specialised training. Essential to good public
service provision, is the training and education of health care professionals (Fanslow 2002;
2007). Hospital staff is often inadequately equipped to deal with the secondary and tertiary
child abuse situations they encounter. Dr. Patrick Kelly is consultant Paediatrician at Starship
Children's Hospital, and Clinical Director of Te Puaruruhau (Australasia's first interagency
child advocacy centre). He believes that CYF and Police services need more help to stop
child abuse, and that not enough is being done to train hospital staff to recognise and act on
suspected cases (NZ Herald, 22 November, 2008). Hospital staff:
...don‟t understand some of the other „below the threshold‟ things,
they are quite hard and we don‟t even know who to access in the
community to help us with [understandings around child abuse].
Doctors need training in what to do to protect children:
Doctors deal with the [clinical issues], and the patient goes out the
door, they are not switched on to asking the questions. I‟ve had
one referral from a GP in two years. GPs have this fond notion of
confidentiality that somehow it should never be breached. When
we are talking about children we should breach confidentiality at
every chance we get! If it‟s going to make a difference.
The Ministry of health is aware of the issue. Fanslow comments on a recent positive trend:
In New Zealand, education of health care providers as part of their
core training has historically been scant or non-existent, but recent
efforts by the Ministry of health have resulted in a number of
training programmes for practitioners being delivered through
professional colleges. (Fanslow, 2005:27)
17

18. Data and privacy
Finally, social and health services lack effective co-ordination of data, which would make a
difference to the timely response to cases.
No-one takes responsibility for co-ordination of cases through
services. Case for good old generic social workers
Police have got their database. Viviana has got a state of the art
database. CYF, WINZ. Hospitals have their database. None
share. It‟s privacy gone mad.
However, Viviana does share aspects of its database with other agencies, while at the same
time protecting certain private and sensitive information of clients. Others are looking at how
information can be shared appropriately for the ultimate good of the children of Waitakere.
There have been efforts made towards shared information:
We had all these services - hospitals, ambulance, and police, all
with their own database. So we got the university interested in
looking at how we could share. We found that if we compared, the
places [tertiary services] were all going to was in the same street.
If we could‟ve put that data all together. So that‟s where the
template idea came from - the worst crime was happening in the
known homes. I think they are doing that on the North Shore.
Mayor Harvey wants to see a national register of children. In his September 2008 press
release, he states that this was once a practice of Plunket and Family Benefit. Mayor Harvey
says legislation such as the Privacy Act is also a hindrance.
It stops us sharing information and it stops us thinking clearly. We
need to think carefully about whether our laws are putting
individuals' civil liberties ahead of the welfare of our children."
(10/9/08 WCC Media release)
18

19. Part Two: What‟s happening in Waitakere?
Introduction
Waitakere City is in the west of the Auckland region. It is bounded the Manukau Harbour,
Rodney and North Shore districts, and to the east by Auckland City.
The Great Start Waitakere report (2003) identifies a number of concerns that need to be
addressed in regard to family violence and, more specifically, child abuse in Waitakere.
Several of these concerns, listed below (not in any particular order), are mirrored in this
report:
 A major attitudinal and behavioural change in regard to family violence / child abuse.
 Parent education (child development and the effects of family violence on children).
 Training to develop professional competence.
 Funding to support violence prevention as well as protection, and more services.
 A holistic response to violence against partners and children.
 Better co-ordination and collaboration - addressing unhelpful „patch protection.‟
 Better whanau / community recognition and reporting of child abuse (no tolerance).
 Improved resources for community workers, especially Maori and Pacific.
 Language appropriate resources.
 Community leaders‟ support (e.g. Pacific Islands church leaders).
 Alternatives to culturally embedded physical punishment regimes.
Everyday Communities
EDC is currently offering support in Waitakere, the first metropolitan site. It has worked to
support awareness through events, radio and print media campaigns. It has supported the
creation of resources, and to strengthen networking amongst related NGOs and government
organisations. And it has supported child abuse prevention education in schools, and positive
parenting initiatives. A respondent remembers EDC‟s introduction to the community, and the
gradual realisation that the size of Waitakere was an issue:
EDC was incredibly well received. It was noticeable that Pacific
and Maori were excited. We sat in a circle, a good thirty people
there at WAVES. For all of us, we didn‟t quite know where the trip
wires were. In rural areas for EDC it has been a much more
straightforward process… it was so hard to be visible; in a small
place it was easy. In Waitakere where there are so many events
and people.
In terms of specific projects, as at the end of the first year (WAVES EDC progress Report,
2007), EDC had assisted the Pacific Island EXPO, Waipareira Pasifika Whanau Day, the
Aotearoa Music Festival and the LynMall Positive Parenting Promotion. In addition, the
report states, EDC has engaged in the Raffles Youth sponsorships, assistance to the Massey
community and building closer relationships with UNITEC. During 2007 / 2008, EDC support
in Waitakere has included funding anti- family violence campaigns on Radio Waatea, Radio
Network and Pacific stations, interviews on Triangle TV, public advertising screens, print
media ads and a range of resources such as tee-shirts, eco bags and calendars. EDC has
further contributed to training for EDC Working Party members. It has supported and funded
community awareness events like Toddler Day Out, Tamariki Ora, Te Ra o te Mokopuna and
the White Ribbon Day march.
19

20. However, for EDC, being visible in a city the size of Waitakere is difficult. Thus people
working in key positions in the field were still unclear about the role of EDC. They knew about
one-off funding, but were confused about EDC‟s overall mandate. People had an expectation
that EDC would be able to “walk alongside projects” and build stronger relationships with
them. It was suggested that this would also build the visibility of the project. The EDC profile
could also be raised through columns in monthly newsletters published by WCC and others:
Violence Free Waitakere has two pages…to promote family
violence issues. EDC could do that same stuff around active
messages….
Waitakere City Council
Waitakere City Council (WCC) has long been an advocate of community partnership and
well-being, particularly where children are concerned. It works with local organisations to
develop and strengthen innovative and inclusive strategies in the city (e.g. First Call for
Children). However, employees remark that they have had little interaction with EDC – rather,
support work for community organisations and projects was proceeding in parallel.
WCC engages mainly with primary strategies to address family violence / child abuse issues,
supporting community and neighbourhood-building projects, and hosting networking events.
As Warwick Pudney observes, at least this level of support is necessary in a city with such
high levels of reported child abuse.
Waitakere city has been at the forefront of tertiary
prevention…Waitakere City Council has been supportive of
community organisations taking advantage of funding and
innovative projects. However, the problems continue, with
Waitakere City having one of the highest rates of violence and
child abuse in the country (Pudney, 2005/2006:51)
The Waitakere Community Report (2006) also notes that Waitakere City‟s family violence
offence rate is high: it was higher than the national average in all of the nine years between
1996 and 2004. Quoting the Waitakere Winter Series Forum Consultation 2005“, the
community report identifies family violence as a key priority for collaborative initiatives by all
partners involved in the delivery of social well-being in the city” (2006:11).
The 2003 Korowai Manaaki report Great Start Waitakere, sees WCC as having a long history
of collaboration in community safety. It reports that the city was awarded “Safe Community”
status by the World Health Organisation in 1999 and its first interagency plan was developed
in 2000 (Te Korowai Manaaki, 2003). Since then, government and community networks and
the WCC have developed a Wellbeing collaboration project incorporating primary prevention
initiatives including Protecting our Tamariki, Massey Matters, the Ranui Action Project, and
the establishment of a social strategy for the city. Waitakere City has also set an example to
other cities with the innovative Family Violence Court. However, child abuse intervention
agencies in the city have grown in an ad hoc way, and this risks gaps in primary, secondary
and tertiary provision.
In April 2008, a stocktake of Waitakere Family Violence services was completed for the
Mayoral Taskforce at the WCC by the Waitakere City Council Advocate for family-violence
prevention, Carol Everard (Everard, 2008). The report acknowledges the work of the Family
Violence Court, which has run every Wednesday since 2001 in order to overcome delays in
the court process, thus minimising damage to families. It acknowledges that there is at
present a high level of interest in family violence prevention, both nationally and locally.
Everard cites several instances, including:
20

21.  The Multi-Ministerial Taskforce established to highlight the issue nationally.
 The MSD and the Families Commission nation wide media campaign.
 The Waitakere City Mayoral Task Force, supported by two working parties
(1) convened by WAVES and (2) convened by Dr. Pita Sharples.
 Three Waitakere City Child Advocates (Barnardos, Tu Wahine, the Pacific Project).
 CYF Everyday Communities.
 DHB health screening (Everard, 2008).
WCC supports programmes that raise the level of Pacific and new settler collaboration and
decision making in this work. For example, in May 2008, the council hosted a Family
Violence Forum. The New Zealand Ethnic Social Services were represented by Hassan
Hosseini who spoke to the group about issues for migrants and refugees. Regular Reducing
Family Violence workshops have been held subsequently, and are ongoing. However,
projects like the Pacific Project and the New Zealand Ethnic Social Service organisation
based in Te Atatu, still lack sufficient resources, visibility and engagement with other service
providers.
Community Organisations - NGOs
Everard comments that community organisations in the region are vital to child abuse
prevention, education and response, as they are recognised as being closer to the
community than government services, having a greater knowledge of local culture, being able
to foster community involvement, and providing services cheaply. Mainstream “Community
organisations” range from large, long-standing organisations such as Plunket and
Barnardos, to small recently established organisations like Grandparents Raising
Grandchildren. Church-based (Presbyterian, Methodist, Salvation Army) organisations
have been successful in supporting formal programmes (Lifewise, Presbyterian social
services, Waitakere Central Corps) for the Waitakere community. She cautions that there
are a number of services which lack a formal structure, co-ordination, databases, funding,
auditing and accountability processes. Community organisations which take up the work
when under-equipped, can leave themselves open to criticism and failure.
Too high expectations and too short time frames. [The community]
had never had this before, why would you expect them to be able
to manage it? It‟s going into that community because that
community has a number of problems identified so how come you
suddenly expect them to be experts in managing funds and setting
up structures?
The Ministry of Health‟s Family Violence Intervention Guidelines – Child and Partner Abuse
(2002) identify some of the issues for staff working in child abuse services. These include
lack of comfort with the issue, lack of formal protocols, lack of time and lack of confidence in
referral agencies. As well as formal training, personal awareness building is vital (Fanslow,
2002; Pudney, 2005/2006; Everard, 2008) for people who are working in this area:
Family violence attracts people who are passionate about it
because it‟s happened to them quite often. Then there hasn‟t been
the money for supervision…
…personnel could be struggling with their own issues so training
might therefore be a big problem
21

22. [behaviour within and between organisations] parallel the
processes that go on in [family violence], there is conflict and often
quite abusive behaviour in a lot of the organisations. I‟m told that
Waitakere is not atypical it happens in other parts of NZ and even
in other parts of the world.
In [other] services, people worked there who had recovered and
had usually done a lot of work on them selves, personal
development. The same journey may not be there for people who
come out of violent relationships
These issues are widely recognised in Waitakere, and actions to address them have been
suggested such as the addition of personal awareness components in formal training, and
supervision:
Unitec is thinking of changing their course, putting in personal
development, personal growth, unhealed childhood issues…that
really has a big impact on their way of working.
…should be a required personal component, would make sense
too, we are not just doing this work from our heads we are doing it
with our whole hearts and our whole lives. Yes, supervision is
important.
[my own personal development] made me safe in the work, self
awareness, teaching me skills, if you haven‟t done your own
personal growth you are not going to go very far and will slip back.
The main barrier to addressing comfort, protocols, time and training issues, seems to be lack
of funding, with child abuse claimed by some to be a case of “Interest first, funding second”.
Everard found that lack of funding, competition for funding and capacity issues, also impacts
on community organisations‟ ability to attract, retain and train quality workers. These claims
are endorsed by Warwick Pudney, who argues that there needs to be more financial support
for local NGOs:
The current intervention agencies have functioned well and need
continued support financially. We need to continue networking to
ensure tight systems of accountability occur to protect our children
(Pudney, 2005/2006:51)
Others suggest that competition for funding causes problems for collaboration between larger
and small organisations:
Finding is a huge issue. Using funding to enable networking and
connections and relationships to happen whatever that might be.
There‟s a bit of disconnect between small local organisations and
big providers who are often funded better. Or there‟s a level of
resentment?
Because of the way everyone‟s funded, they are all going to the
same trusts, and some of them are funded from ten different
sources. So from a business point of view they are not talking to
each other
22

23. The Ministry of Health‟s Guidelines (2002) claim that since child abuse often co-occurs with
partner abuse, issues cannot therefore be treated in isolation. A report produced in 2003 as
part of the Waitakere Wellbeing collaboration project endorsed this view:
[There is]…a need to look at child abuse and partner abuse
together – need to deal with mothers and children in a more
holistic way…reinforce that neither type of violence is acceptable
and that we need to better support women so that they can
support their children (Te Korowai Manaaki report 2003)
Everard states that Maori and Pacific communities respond to holistic and cultural
approaches to family violence prevention that includes counselling, family support services,
crisis services, youth programmes, and child advocacy. There seems to be an increasing
awareness that holistic service provision is helpful not only to Maori and Pacific communities,
but also to the range of other communities in Waitakere.
Maori Service provision
Maori services are aimed at connecting people to their whanau and community. There are
long-standing and important Maori initiatives in Waitakere – The Hoani Waititi urban marae
supports the whole whanau, but is noted especially for its tamariki development through
kohanga reo, kura, and youth programmes. The Waipareira Trust brings a holistic vision to
strengthening families based around the concept of Moemoea – the Dream. Within this
concept, strong family characteristics include: knowledge whakapapa and taonga; ability to
speak one‟s own language; valuing of children; recognition of roles, functions and
responsibilities; collective ability to meet responsibilities; resources to meet needs. Indicators
that the dream has been achieved include: all Tamariki are comfortable and in a safe place
where they can learn safely and well. Waipareira is contracted to promote child protection
and deliver services to vulnerable families in Waitakere. Child abuse prevention and
protection initiatives include: a specialist family home with full time house parents (up to five
residents) and a Family Violence Waipareira programme. In addition the organisation is
working with SWIS, developing a Family Violence research project for children, offering
national advice on family violence protection and prevention, developing networks with Mo
Wai Te Ora parenting programme based at Waitakere hospital, and planning a midwifery
service will be integrated with early child health services (Waipareira annual report,
2007/2008).
In addition, Tika Marama has an established refuge for women who have been victims of
abuse, and their children. Tu Wahine provides primary prevention and intervention
services to Maori whanau affected by rape, incest, sexual abuse and family violence. The
Maori caucus named „Korowai Manaaki‟ 3runs anti-violence radio programmes on Radio
Watea and works closely with Tu Wahine. The caucus also receives funding from SKIP to
provide parenting programmes. Recently, Tu Wahine and Te Korowai Manaaki / Great Start
Waitakere produced a Family Violence Primary Prevention strategy (2006-2010) for
Tamariki under five in Waitakere. The strategy claims a “one size fits all” approach is not
feasible, and that a Maori cultural framework for addressing Maori child abuse is
necessary. This claim is reinforced elsewhere by Maori:
In non-Maori organisation, a Maori cultural framework is missing.
It does help the relationship.
3
Korowai Manaaki was the name given to the 2003 Great Start Waitakere report and subsequently used by the
Maori caucus.
23

24. We have a concept of a continuum running from Kahupo to Tiora,
and the distance between is the journey that people are on.
Abusers and the abused would be Kahupo. Whakama (loss of
identity, shame) needs to be dealt with by finding out what it is that
is hurting people and putting it right. Pakeha need to honour that
and where people come from. It‟s not just about honour. There are
[ripples out from] abusers and victims, to others.
However some Maori argue that Maori providers don‟t have the capacity to provide sufficient
services to Maori. They point out that 13% of the Waitakere population is Maori, yet 40-45%
of people represented in Family Violence statistics are Maori. In addition, community workers
state that Maori often prefer to use non-Maori services. A Maori community worker explains:
There are issues around the quality of service and delivery – the
feeling that you get a better, more professional service from non-
Maori. Another reason for Maori preferring non-Maori services is
that non-Maori services would challenge them less around issues
of ethnicity. I.e. they could appeal to culture.
Pacific Service Provision
Pacific people in Waitakere fall into two distinct groups: there are people who have lived here
for more than one generation, sometimes for many generations, and then there are those
who were born in the Islands and have to learn to manage the entirely different culture of
mainstream New Zealand. The latter experience the greatest culture shock. Pacific
community workers discuss cultural differences in New Zealand and how they impact on
Pacific childrearing and authority structures:
[Pacific-born citizens] have [now] got to live in an environment
where you have to have money. The law says you can‟t leave
children and have to feed them at the appropriate time. All of
those factors lead to so-called violence. We have physical
punishment [in our culture]. It‟s so hard for our families, to have to
find money, not having the support that they are used to back
home. A different way of living, we have to try a variety of
approaches with them.
Social services targeted specifically at Pacific peoples are provided by a relatively small
number of community organisations (Waitakere Community report, 2006). The main Pacific
service providing education and family violence awareness in Waitakere is the Pacific
Islands Safety & Prevention Project Inc. ('The Project'), based in Massey. Training is
provided to educators using resources to deliver messages in specific languages.
Counsellors facilitate men's groups, couples groups, parenting and womens' support groups.
The organisation leads Violence Free Pasefika, a network of pacific peoples who work with
Pacific communities in combating family violence. The other key organisation was Waipareira
Pacific (WAIPAS), but this has recently been dissolved and project work is now undertaken
by the Waipareira Trust.
Pacific community workers point out that for new settlers in particular, education and
prevention programmes need to be presented in their own languages. Language specific
education is also important for the thousands of older Pacific people who may not have a
strong grasp of the English language, but do have authority over younger family members:
We are like dead people when we are speaking to English, when
we listen to presentations in English, we lose 40% of that,
24

25. translating before responding, so stuff needs to be language
specific.
Every meeting that we had in Waitakere we ask for resources to
be translated. But it always falls to deaf ears. Those mamas and
those grandmothers at home they are the key members of the
family. If we go home and the grandmothers say this is the
programme we have to do, they will hammer it down to the aunties
and the uncles.
Quite often it‟s an aunty and uncle, extended family who are more
important in terms of safety than the immediate family, quite often
they save you from really harsh [hitting].
Mainstream local authorities‟ handling of family violence issues is considered by Pacific
people to be sometimes culturally unsafe:
You need discretion, you‟ve got to take into account whakama,
[you need to] talk to the elder of this house and explain to him that
what‟s happened here is wrong. Without shaming him in front of
the whole neighbourhood. That punishment‟s even worse. Plus
he‟s going to lose this job and that would create more stress. More
stress would end up with more violence
For Pacific families, the church is often the centre of support services:
The church is like an island without the beach. When they come to
the church they feel really within their culture. Children will get
support in the church. The church is the strength for Pacifika
families and always will be. Pacific island gatherings always look
out for children.
At the end of 2007 twelve churches were involved in a SKIP programme, which proved
difficult at the start. While there were Ministers who supported the programme, other
Ministers sometimes put up barriers to changing the culture of strong discipline:
…who totally believed that it was their right, spare the rod and
spoil the child, so there was a lot of work that needed to be done.
Because of the involvement of other ministers and their wives –
they managed to come around.
Now we have ministers who come to ask to have a supporting
letter for programmes that they actually want to do in churches,
and it‟s awesome they come out now from their comfort zone to
ask for programmes for each church.
Finally, lack of funding and powerlessness to determine the use of funding they had, caused
concern among several Pacific community workers.
New Settlers
New Settlers can face particularly difficult issues such as culture shock, language barriers
and (refugee) trauma, yet there are insufficient services across Waitakere to assist this
particular group to understand the new society:
25

26. We come from societies where raising kids was done totally
differently, you would, a smack here and there…What you don‟t
know you don‟t know, you discipline you kids and your neighbour
rings up…you could be up late at night, no such boundaries. Even
now I say [you must] tell parents from the outset that smacking
your children, leaving you child under 14 is wrong.
In 2004 a WCC “Call to Action” initiative calling itself New Out West (NOW) formed the
Waitakere Ethnic board which overseas services for migrants. Although organisations such
as WEA support migrants through English language and driver‟s licence course provision, the
only Waitakere based service specifically for new settlers is the New Zealand Ethnic Social
Services. Carol Everard reports that it is “…short staffed, with no social infrastructure to call
on when they have no core funding” (Everard, 2005). The organisation counteracts these
deficits by being innovative and collaborative, working successfully alongside mainstream
Waitakere organisations such as WAVES, CYF and Waipareira (“Wonderful, we have a good
relationship”). Its work with Selwyn College represents a particularly successful collaboration
with a provider:
Selwyn a good model, but unfortunately we don‟t have anyone
else. Selwyn has child course, and English course, special
refugee unit…we really need more units like at Selwyn College,
especially with child care. Part of the [NZ Ethnic Social Services]
courses are conducted at Selwyn.
NZ Ethnic Social Services convened a forum in May 2008 that explored refugee and migrant
family violence. Possibly as a result of the collaborative outlook and energy of the
organisation, many local organisations became involved. For instance, a mainstream
provider assisted the organisation by arranging for a student from the tech college to work
there two days a week to co-ordinate the meeting.
The forum was followed by a monthly meeting on the topic, hosted by NZ Ethnic Social
Services. The organisation now runs SKIP funded parenting programmes, family violence
education, English classes, budgeting and driving licence courses at its rooms in Te Atatu.
Members of the Pacific community have joined in the workshops and a Pacific leader has
helped to get new settler parenting programmes running on Triangle television.
In terms of having to learn New Zealand laws and mainstream parenting practices, New
Settler communities recognise that they have a lot in common with Pacific communities. They
also see that they have much in common with Maori, and that they work collaboratively with
Maori providers.
Our values the same re whanau and respect for elders and we
love our food! Waipareira, Family Start, home visiting so a number
of our new settler mums are on that programme, I get phone calls
form them when they want interpreters.
Despite all this work, New Settlers themselves seem to be less visible than other groups
within mainstream service provision in Waitakere. There are some good examples of
mainstream service providers who have employed a part time new settler, or used
interpreters, but new settlement has only been on the agenda of mainstream agencies “over
the last five or six years”, and only a few have actually modified their own practices. Some
New Settlers have joined mainstream services such as parenting, but there have also been
failures, generally understood to be due to English language deficits.
26

27. I love the mix of races. Last week I had seven different
nationalities visit, very small numbers of new settlers. A Korean
woman dropped out said she couldn‟t keep up with the language.
We did do some work with New Migrants initially a little through
the NZ Ethnic social services for the SKIP stuff but we have very
little [take-up] from the migrant community. That‟s a big gap.
Fragmented community, and language skills.
There are small grassroots New Settler groups in Waitakere who meet informally for
discussion and support. An Eritrean coffee group has been given funding by MSD‟s Family
and Community Services. Other New Settlers travel out of the city to join groups in the wider
Auckland region.
Collaboration across Waitakere Services
Collaboration seems to work best among tertiary services. A “collaborative network around
child abuse services” in Waitakere is claimed by some providers for responding to and acting
on call outs. Viviana and Man Alive, for instance, work closely with the courts and with the
police. Viviana works with a range of other organisations including Tika Maranga and Victim
support. The Family Violence court sometimes direct first time offenders to these and other
services, and make referrals to Man Alive, West Auckland Women‟s centre SAFE
programme, Lifewise, Relationship Services, or, if clients can pay, the Waitakere Abuse and
Trauma Centre.
The police, Viviana and CYFs work together to follow up on call outs and to maintain an
effective database within the community. Plunket are working towards training nurse
specialists in family violence to work alongside Police and CYFs. Three organisations are
also in the process of leasing a house that will become a one-stop hub for the local
community. Participants are WAVES, Violence Free Waitakere and Tika Marama (Maori
women‟s refuge). One member of the group explains it is a well supported collaborative
venture:
We will share, it will have prevention and co-ordination and
urgency…The Mayoral Task Force on Family Violence is certainly
impressed with it, and there‟s a possibility that the council might
support us as well, lease for the first year, a lot of things in
process a really good position.
Among primary services, there is less coordination and collaboration. While acknowledging
the good work of WAVES, service providers believe that members of the community need
more information about the range of services, what they provide, and how they can be
accessed:
We need a point of contact that families can access and
understand exactly how those agencies work and how to get in
touch with a lot of those services - people are frustrated with trying
to get access to services.
For the average person knowing how and when to call for help is
tricky. I proposed that an agency or clearinghouse got set up, so
that if there was a concern, people could ring in and talk about it.
There definitely is a collaborative network but not sure whether it‟s
fabulously well functioning. Maybe over the last 4-5 years,
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28. WAVES has certainly lifted the profile of all the agencies involved
and the work they are doing. I still find sometimes that it is a
struggle to know exactly who is doing what and where the gaps
are and who I refer to if we can‟t fill the gaps. But the profile has
really lifted a lot and in that sense I feel really confident about it.
Collaboration is considered to be particularly weak in terms of child advocacy. Three
organisations in Waitakere won the opportunity to host child advocates. They were Tu
Wahine, Barnardos and the Pacific Project. Full collaboration between the position holders
has not yet occurred. Suggestions have been made that this might be because the roles
were not well-considered by funders at the outset:
I met another child advocate from another area, at an MSD hui
and she said they‟d had a lot of problems in their area as well. It
seemed like a good idea but it had been put in place really quickly
without really preparing agencies communities and the people
themselves, and so in most places there were difficulties
Respondents cite other areas in New Zealand where collaboration and networking is stronger
than in Waitakere, but also believe that with new initiatives, collaboration and information
sharing is improving in this area:
In the South Island there‟s a key person that gives people
information they need 0-6. You‟d feed into there first like a big
directory. Over that period instead of getting questions coming
from the community [they] actually came from the agencies.
When it‟s functioning well the Strengthening Families process
(where several agencies work with several families) works well.
They have networks at their fingertips. I think it‟s getting used
more and more.
Child advocacy needs the support of a wide range of people in the
community. They will rebuild now...will get some sort of support
going.
While a collaborative service response to family violence may be growing in Waitakere, there
is also a growing awareness of the need to highlight child abuse.
I think there are a heck of a lot of family services very few child specific
services
The default position is taken often to work with families rather than
children themselves. I don‟t think that‟s because it‟s the best thing
for kids. I think it‟s because what people know to do.
Child Advocates are not focused on children, but adults. They
should network, but some organisations have own governance
structures, and are not putting children first, but last.
Keen to place children back at the centre of child abuse prevention, a group of Waitakere
community work leaders convened a local forum called “In Our Hands”. Recommendations
informed the Mayoral Taskforce and the It‟s Not OK campaign:
We decided between us that probably the [Mayoral] taskforce
wasn‟t being focused in its work cos it didn‟t have a task, and that
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29. the people that were on it were at all different levels of
acknowledgement about what was happening in the community
and what to do about it. So we convened something that would
bring the community together to think around these things and
about taking responsibility, statutory and non-statutory. We had a
wide range of individuals and organisations, about 60 people…out
of that, we got a mandate back to the taskforce to place children
at the centre of all their work.
The Taskforce for Action on Violence within Families has made child maltreatment (including
abuse and neglect) prevention a strategic priority between 2008 and 2011, and to working
with communities to strengthen their preventative responses. The Taskforce undertakes to
ensure that resources in the next phase will focus specifically on child maltreatment.
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30. Early childhood support (0-4 years)
Everard (2008) reports that a number of agencies had identified that there was not enough
monitoring of the health and safety of little children:
Children between the ages of 0-2 years old can be particularly at
risk but currently the numbers of children who fall into this
category in Waitakere is unknown (Everard, 2008:18)
Concerned about safety for children under five, Safe Waitakere facilitated the Safe Under 5
Plan in 2001. This process uncovered a major gap in child protection for this age group and
resulted in a new project initiative, “Protecting our Tamariki”, in 2002 (Te Korowai Manaaki
report, 2003), now part of the Waitakere Wellbeing Collaboration Project. Protecting our
Tamariki works to reduce violence to women and children under five. However, the
organisers have chosen an emphasis on primary violence prevention, since:
Reducing violence against under 5s isn‟t enough; we actually
need to stop it happening in the first place (Te Korowai Manaaki
report, 2003)
This emphasis echoes the emphasis placed on primary care by the MSD and the EDC
programme. An important aspect of primary care for babies is antenatal preparation for the
parenting role. The current model of antenatal care is considered too medical, failing to
support the parent emotionally and psychologically. There is a need to provide more
welcoming environments for new parents:
…attachment is misunderstood, how important that is. At present
ante-natal preparation for the birth is very medical but if it could be
a new parents‟ class, more welcoming to new parents. Before a
child was released from hospital….
Waitakere Hospital‟s Child & Family Service offers a free community based health service
providing health education, health screening, parenting support and education and well child
care. Mothers can also get access to free midwives (Waitakere Community report, 2006).
However, the short duration of confinement in hospital is a concern, in terms of the time
needed for new parents to feel confident with their babies:
One of the hugest issues is the turnaround getting mothers out of
hospital within 24 hours. Far too fast. It doesn‟t allow them to
establish breast feeding, doesn‟t allow the mother time to get to
know her babies. She needs to be kept in for 4-5 days.
Midwives may be seen by the hospital as a way to manage problems associated with short
hospital stays. However, community workers claim that this is an insufficient response, as
midwives are not able to visit frequently enough or to stay long with the new mother:
They would say midwifery services are there to plug the gaps, but
I don‟t think they are, the midwife calls in once a day doesn‟t get
breastfeeding established. They do that for a few days then it tails
off
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31. Home Visits
In Waitemata, midwives are able to contact Plunket on the mother‟s behalf, so that nurses
can make home visits. However, Everard (2008) claims that there are gaps in care handover
processes from hospital to Plunket that interfere with continuity of care. This could be
addressed by closer co-ordination between midwives and Plunket, although the above
comments from respondents suggest that the short period of hospital confinement and
insufficient numbers of midwives or lead maternity carers in hospitals may be the cause.
Plunket offices are in Henderson and Rodney. Nurses will visit
mothers in their homes, at the mother‟s request, four to six weeks
after birth. Early childhood home visits often include parent
education. Plunket nurses assess the baby and help mothers with
issues such as feeding, sleep, immunisation and parenting
education. Annual follow up visits are then made until the child
reaches five years old. Plunket also puts mothers in touch with
other families, particularly new mothers, through playgroups. In
addition there is Plunket Line, a 24-hour support service for
anything to do with parenting and children under five years:
Appropriate follow-up home care is essential to a child‟s (and mother‟s) well being, and a
range of home visit programmes for parents with children from birth to five, provide them with
guidance, and where needed, extra support through referral to other services:
The home visit thing is critically important and has got to be a
cultural match and build up a relationship over a period of time.
Research from overseas…no parent should even have to ask.
The Government initiative Parents as First Teachers (PAFT) is available for parents with
children from 0-4. Providers of this initiative offer free, practical support for mothers, who hear
about PAFT through the midwives. Participating families receive regular home visits from
trained parent educators who share information and practical ideas. Parent educators
observe record and monitor the child‟s growth and development in order to identify potential
problems early. A number of services target „priority populations‟ such as Maori and Pacific
children from low socio-economic backgrounds (Home Visitor and Parenting Programme
Project Report, 2007; Waitakere Community report, 2006).
One such programme is Family Start, a home visiting programme run by Waipareira Pasifika
and now managed by the Waipareira Trust. The family / whanau visitor works with the family
to identify priorities and to support them to achieve their goals. If a family is involved with
many different agencies, family/whanau worker acts as an advocate and coordinator between
all agencies to protect the family‟s priorities. The programme works by self referral, or referral
by hospital social workers or CYF. But it struggles with the difficulty of meeting families‟
needs:
They are stretched to the max and they will only take referrals for
people who are willing to work with them. They way they deal with
restraints is we will do a couple of cold calls, leave a card or if they
are reluctant, oh well, we have families willing to work with us.
Bilukha et al (2005) report that there is strong evidence of the effectiveness of home visits
especially where the programmes are delivered by professionals during the child‟s first two
years of life, and run for more than two years. Although home visits are generally considered
to be helpful for parents (“Traditionally visits in the home is understood to be the way of
getting alongside people and helping them feel comfortable”), sometimes this does not work
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32. well for people who need a quiet place “to escape to” from their home environment, or who
would like to maintain privacy / confidentiality from family members:
A client would always be asked if they would prefer someone from
a Maori organisation, but often prefer not to, a lot of sensitivity
around that.
In terms of home support, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren is a successful grassroots
initiative which is doing a lot of important work. The Grandparents Raising Children Trust is
based on Auckland‟s north shore, and there are support groups throughout the country.
Established by grandparents who saw a need, the organisation draws in many grandparents
who struggled as parents themselves, and offers training to interested participants in areas of
child development such as attachment. The trust, funded by the Portage Licensing Trust, has
appointed two area co-ordinators. The organisation advertises in local print media, and in
public buildings. Some local schools are highly supportive and some grandparents have
taken roles as teacher aides within those schools. The role is a difficult one, and there is a
need for a visible venue in the community:
They are dealing with some of our most damaged kids, and they
spend a lot of time running across one side of the city to another
in their retirement. They have talked about the need for a one-stop
shop.
Parent Education outside the home
Research undertaken by Moran, Ghate and van de Merwe (2004), suggests that early
intervention parenting programmes are best, and that the most effective interventions will
have a strong theoretical base, measurable objectives, more than one method of delivery,
attention to retention, a variety of referral routes, structured programmes, trained and skilled
staff, and a parallel focus on parents, families and children. The Families Commission‟s
review of parenting programmes in New Zealand (Kerslake, Henricks and Balakrishnan,
2005) identified a range of good parenting programmes (Family Start, Parents as First
Teachers, Plunket‟s Well Child / Tamariki Ora, Anau Ako Pasifika, Whanau Toko I Te Ora),
and those offered by Barnados and Presbyterian Support Services. In Waitakere SKIP
funding supports a “huge” amount of parent education:
The SKIP approach was very solid and sound, sensible, and is
having effects now. The production of resources, which is what
most people know about, is only a small part of SKIP. It is a
mindset and a change of thinking around alternative ways to
parent. It‟s about conscious parenting, thinking about the sorts of
parents they want to be.
There is no shortage of places we can send people to. There‟s
availability in just about every NGO in Waitakere. Some are free,
some aren‟t. Barnados are free.
As a non-statutory organisation, Barnardos is has the advantage of being more trusted, and
is well used by the community.
It is non-threatening, and there is quite an acceptance [among
recipients] about receiving help, it disperses barriers
Barnardos offers a range of services, with integrated support for families so that they are not
required to repeat their story to each service. The organisation offers different levels of help
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33. from budgeting advice to counselling, supervised contact, child care, and other services.
Other organisations besides Barnardos that offer structured, weekly courses include Lifewise,
Man Alive, WEA and The Pacific Project. The Waipareira Trust offers a weekly parenting
programme on Maori TV. Lifewise runs courses for parents of toddlers, parents of school age
children and teenagers, and a parenting through separation course which is part of the family
courts. Man Alive also runs programmes referred by the courts for men. Of the Family Court‟s
distribution of referrals to community intervention services, 57% were to Man Alive.
Mostly parents self-refer to courses, and demand is high, which seems to suggest the
programmes are meeting parents‟ needs. They also note that many parenting courses are
complementary and therefore parents can, and do, attend more than one course.
Most courses are run by trained and skilled staff.
Although several providers reported high numbers of attendees, some report reluctance on
the part of families to participate in parenting courses both inside and outside the home. They
suggest that this is possibly due to a view by parents that they are being judged:
We are not getting the message across to parents that parenting
is a learned behaviour so that when we suggest they do a
parenting course they see it as a punishment…at every
opportunity people should be taking is that there is this wonderful
parenting course.
Examples of combination parenting / childcare programmes are the Home Interaction
Programme for Parents and Youngsters (HIPPY) runs in Helensville, Ranui and Kelston. The
West Auckland Parents‟ Centre runs parent education, child birth education and parent
education courses as well as playgroups. Barnardos runs Kidstart programmes in Glen Eden
and Henderson. Workers report that it is crucial that the course environment is very
comfortable and welcoming, as parents may not have the resources to continue otherwise:
It‟s hard to get them in the first place but if you‟ve go in there they
don‟t know how to do that ice-breaking behaviour so they go in
they feel uncomfortable and they say I didn‟t like that so I‟m not
going back.
Waitemata DHB recognises the important links between parenting education and early
childhood education. Their Child Health Strategic Plan (2003) and the Home Visitor and
Parenting Programme Project (2007) reports both recognise the need for increased services
for parents and their young children especially for Maori and Pacific Islands children. Maori
and Pacific providers themselves consider it essential that parenting support is culturally
appropriate. The Pacific Islands Safety & Prevention Project Inc. ('The Project') is based in
Massey, and provides specific education for Pacific Islands communities on parenting
including family violence awareness, in a manner that is culturally appropriate.
Early Childhood Education
The Great Start Waitakere (Te Korowai Manaaki) report has a strong focus on increasing the
numbers of children engaged in early childhood education. There are several community-
based early childhood education programmes including Playcentre, playgroups, day care
centres and Barnados centres. These services in Waitakere provide opportunities for parents
to come in contact with each other and to learn parenting skills, while focussing on the well
being, socialisation and learning of children. Playcentres were established for this purpose,
and offer learning for children from birth to 6 years. Centres are run co-operatively by
whanau/parents as an extension to the whanau/family setting. An example is the Te
Akoranga (West Auckland) SPACE (Supporting Parents Alongside Children's Education)
Programme, which is for first-time parents with newborn babies, starting at age 0-3 months.
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