Transcript Poverty and the most vulnerable: Who’s looking after the

Poverty and the most vulnerable: Who’s
looking after the children?
Deborah Morris-Travers
and
Jenny Corry
What we’ll cover
• Child poverty in Aotearoa today
– Its lasting impacts
– Who is in poverty
• International comparisons
• What young people say
• Solutions
The
traditional
image of
child
poverty
The nature of child poverty in Aotearoa NZ
• It affects child development and has a pervasive
impact on all child wellbeing indicators.
• In the past twenty years children have been the
population group most likely to be in poverty (on
various measures) and those most likely to be in
poverty are the youngest children (0-4).
• Inequities between populations and also
between generations.
The nature of child poverty in Aotearoa NZ
• Extremely poor child health outcomes linked
to low public investment and the political
invisibility of children.
• OECD and UNCRC are urging government
action to address child health, child poverty,
and lack of access to services.
• Socially and economically unsustainable – at
least $6bn per annum.
Which children are in poverty?
1994
35%
76%
26%
77%
of all children
sole-parent families
two-parent families
no adult in paid work
2009
25%
43%
13%
77%
Social exclusion
He Ara Hou quotes Lister (cited in Perry 2010 (2004, p7)
“Poverty has to be understood not just as a disadvantaged and
insecure economic condition but also as a shameful and
corrosive social relation...(the non-material aspects include)
...lack of voice; disrespect, humiliation and assault on dignity
and self-esteem; shame and stigma; powerlessness; denial of
rights and diminished citizenship... They stem from people in
poverty’s everyday interactions with the wider society and
from the way they are talked about and treated by politicians,
officials, the media and other influential bodies.”
Social impacts
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Teenage pregnancy.
Reduced employment and economic status.
Crime and social exclusion.
Over-representation of Maaori and Pasifika
children (more than half of the children in
poverty).
Impact on child health
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Nutrition – mental and physical development.
Obesity.
Injury and abuse.
Behavioural and mental health problems.
Hospitalisation with pneumonia is 5-10 times higher than
comparable countries.
• NZ incidence of bronchiectasis is 8-9 times higher than OECD
countries.
• Hospitalisation rates for rheumatic fever are 14 times higher
than other OECD countries - can cause heart damage.
• Rates of skin diseases have more than doubled since 1994
(Innes Asher).
Impact on education
• Not school ready, lower ECE participation.
• Lower educational outcomes.
• Exclusion from school trips, sport and cultural
education.
• No school uniforms and stationery.
• Direct relationship between positive learning
outcomes, concentration, self-control and
positive engagement with a good quality
breakfast.
International comparisons
Denmark
Finland
Norway
Sweden
Australia
Canada
UK
New Zealand
Italy
USA
Mexico
-
2.4%
2.8%
3.4%
4.2%
14.7%
14.9%
15.4%
16.3%
16.6%
21.9%
27.7%
(UNICEF Innocenti Centre 2005, 50% of Median Income Measure)
What do children and young people say?
“Poverty is the lack of something
to make your life better.”
– Young people at Streets Ahead 237, Porirua
What do children and young people say?
“Poverty to me means
the children missing out.”
– Majenta, Teen parent, Whanganui
What do children and young people say?
“Poverty is… Hard working parents
but still unable to support their family.
Parents working too much
and unable to spend time with their children,
missing special occasions like birthdays.”
– Dunedin young people’s group
What do children and young people
say?
0800WhatUps free counseling helpline
1.
Three questions
Do you think NZ needs to do more
to support children, young people
and families?
2.
Where do families get their best
and most important support form?
3.
Do you think the government
should have a Children’s Action
Plan that helps make sure children
are healthy, safe, loved and cared
for and do well at school?
And finally asked children to tell us their
ides on how adults can help
children live better lives.
1.
More support for children - 1992
responses, 1420 answered YES and
438 said NO. NOT SURE – 134
2.
The majority of children (1093 from
1790 responses) identified family
and community as offering the best
support (364 identified government
and 333 were not sure)
3.
Again the majority of children
believe government should have a
Children's Action Plan (1117 of 1659
responses) while 444 disagreed with
this statement and 98 weren’t sure.
What do children and young people say?
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“I think that adults should not have to worry about money or anything and should just be
able to play with their kids, and be able to just not stress, so they have more time to play with
their kids.”
“My idea is, that I think kids should get free milk like in the olden days when kids got free
milk, and we should have lockers in primary school, and when you go to the doctors it should
be free ‘cos what’s the deal if you go to the doctors and you are in pain and you have to pay,
that’s stupid.”
“Free medical care for under 16’s.”
“I think Government should help out all students so we have our own stationary and stuff,
cause some people might not have enough money to pay for their own stationary, so it may
make it harder to find a job, cause it’s really hard to get a job here, so I was wondering if they
would be able to pay for our stationary. Bye”
“I think the government could help children by not having so many wrinkly olc men in
parliament”
Callers to 0800 What’s Up, Consultation on the Green Paper 2011/12
What do children and young people say?
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“I think that adults help kids be safer in their families, from abuse from the adults like when
adults hit you, Child, Youth and Family should be stricter on that and take children when they
are being hurt by their parents.”
“My message is that the government should put the prices down on things like food and living
supplies, and fruit and vegetables so that we can all live healthier lives, and put the cost
down on school fees so that we can all have a good education not just the rich. I think that
John key shouldn’t be the prime minister cause he is just making the rich richer and the poor
poorer, and my family is not rich and we are just ending up poorer and poorer and not
enough money for me to get a good education or nice healthy food cause they keep going up
in prices, I hope that this gets to the prime minister cos it’s true.”
“Kids should get school lunches or school fruit.”
“Um I think that adults should take off time from their work and um spend time with their
kids more, and that, and take them out and that, that’s how I think adults should be, thankyou
Callers to 0800 What’s Up, Consultation on the Green Paper 2011/12
What do children and young people say?
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“I think that the Government should give us money cause my family is really poor and I don’t
get much money and it’s really hard, I have to find shoes from the warehouse for $2 and they
hurt my feet, and I got like the little toes is really sore, and I need money to get shoes cause
my shoes are really small, and I barely get new shoes cause we are a bit poor of money, okay
goodbye”
“We should make a future plan for our children, when they are born the parents should put
money away for future education and the government should help fund that”
“I think that the Government should honestly pay more attention to children, because the
children are the future of NZ basically, and if the children of NZ are not getting treated as
they should, obviously in the future then they won’t be how you want them, cause you don’t
train them up when they are little and you think that by letting them be the way they are and
not having a plan of action for them when they are young of being healthy, exercising well,
and just doing whatever the hell they want, it will just make them grow up and not them the
be the people you want them to people or the people they want to be Should be better to
have a plan of action for when they grow up, not for when they get older, cause they will be
thinking why didn’t I know this when I was younger. Drinking should be made illegal,
cannabis should be illegal”
Callers to 0800 What’s Up, Consultation on the Green Paper 2011/12
How are we responding?
Barnardos…by listening to what children and
families have told us
• Home based care and education and social
services
• Community hubs
• Teen parent facilities
• WhatsUp Helpline
What do we need?
“The general socio-economic milieu within
which children are raised has far-reaching
consequences for their health development.”
- Gluckman et al 2011
What do we need?
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A strong economy.
Liveable incomes.
Expansion of free healthcare for under 6s.
Accessible, quality, early childhood care and
education.
Affordable, healthy, housing.
Tax credits for beneficiaries.
Low taxes on low incomes.
Support for beneficiaries to get into work.
What do we need?
• Targets and a plan to improve all outcomes for
children.
• Monitoring of child and youth health.
• Stronger, connected communities.
• Support for parents and parents linked into their
children’s education.
• A budgetary review – efficacy and equity- increased
and more effective public investment.
• Child impact reporting and policies that meet our
obligations under the UNCROC – visibility and voice.
Current opportunities
• Ministerial Committee on Poverty
• Advisory Committee
• Health Select Committee Inquiry into the
Prevention of Child Abuse (4 May)
• White Paper – Children’s Action Plan
• 1000 days to get it right
• Te Papa event 10 May and 12 July
Conclusion
Poverty is a political choice – we can change it
www.everychildcounts.org.nz
www.barnardos.org.nz