Funding and contracts delivering services for tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau
and involved in the oranga tamariki system often need support to recover from the abuse and neglect they may have suffered, along with services to address complex behaviours. Oranga Tamariki funds, delivers and directly purchases services and supports to meet these needs. These are provided alongside what other government agencies deliver and fund.
Through our monitoring visits, we heard about the positive impact of initiatives, including those delivered by and Māori providers. Since 2019, Oranga Tamariki has progressed a strategy to increase investment in strategic partnerships and in , iwi and Māori providers across the country. Where flexible funding models are used, they enable holistic, wraparound and enduring support for tamariki and their , and services can be more effective and responsive.
Despite this, we have recently heard about the impact of funding cuts and changes to services delivered by iwi and Māori providers, along with other services that tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau rely on. These services include early intervention that, when done well, can prevent further involvement in the oranga tamariki system. The uncertainty caused by the cuts and changes was felt among providers, including Māori providers, and kaimahi from agencies.
"I don’t feel tika or pono at the moment. We’ve worked closely with iwi and forged good relationships, it’s been hard, but the goal-post changes, then we have to go back and tell them. It breaks trust … it’s the difficulties in contracts that’s the issue and their trust in us is dwindling, yet we are asking for more and more with less [funding].”
ORANGA TAMARIKI LEADER
When looking at services provided by other government agencies such as Education and Health, we heard about tamariki and rangatahi in the oranga tamariki system not being consistently prioritised, similar to our findings in our latest Experiences of Care report.82 A lack of prioritisation across government agencies, a retreat to core services that is often at the cost of collaborative working arrangements and increased controls on spending within Oranga Tamariki has reduced the ability of tamariki and rangatahi Māori to access the things they need.
"In a world of diminishing resources, there is a power struggle. It is about workloads and funding … and it gets in the way of good collaboration.”
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE KAIMAHI
The government invests in services to ensure , and their involved in the oranga tamariki system receive the support they need and have positive outcomes. These are delivered through a range of government agencies including the Ministries of Education, Health, Justice and Social Development, NZ Police and Oranga Tamariki.
Oranga Tamariki is funded83 to invest in and deliver services. This is to ensure that tamariki, rangatahi and their whānau receive certain supports while they are involved with Oranga Tamariki. Some of the services that Oranga Tamariki must deliver are required by legislation such as the Oranga Tamariki Act and the National Care Standards Regulations.
In 2023/24, Oranga Tamariki contracted $286 million for prevention and early support services, and nearly $14 million for intensive response services. In addition, Oranga Tamariki also directly purchases services and supports for individual tamariki, rangatahi and whānau – for example, to purchase things that a child in care may need (such as clothing) or specialist health services (such as therapy or treatment).
The 2023/24 Oranga Tamariki Annual Report states that it provides and co-ordinates services to children and families to address early signs of need and the factors that may lead to a child going into care.84 It also works closely with families so children can remain safely at home where possible, with their family, within their culture and connected to their communities.
The services Oranga Tamariki contracts and funds cover a broad range of services and initiatives and are provided through a range of funding models, approaches and contracts – for example, the Enabling Communities prototypes are examples of a decentralised model. Oranga Tamariki invests in and contracts , strategic partners and Māori providers alongside community organisations to deliver services. Tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau require this full range of services and supports.
"Supporting locally led innovation by enabling communities is important to ... change the way we work with and shift decision making and resources to Māori and communities, to mobilise supports in a timely way and reduce risk of children coming to our attention or needing a statutory response, and to improve care responses.”85
Investment in iwi and Māori providers benefits tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau
During our engagements, rangatahi Māori and their whānau were positive about the services and support they received from iwi and Māori providers and reflected on their holistic approach, which works with the whānau rather than just working with tamariki and rangatahi alone. Their positive views were shared by kaimahi from providers and government agencies. An Oranga Tamariki kaimahi in the Taranaki-Manawatū region said their relationship with the local iwi has enabled them to build relationships with whānau as most whānau “do not have a good impression” of Oranga Tamariki.
Some whānau spoke about the services at Papakura Marae (based in Auckland). These covered wraparound services helping tamariki and rangatahi to find courses or schools and to access health services, including organising doctor’s appointments and providing immunisations at their home. They also spoke of being provided with food parcels and support from Family Start86 kaimahi at the marae. A couple of rangatahi also spoke positively about Papakura Marae, telling us they were supported to learn te reo Māori and gain employment. One rangatahi said they were supported to get their driver licence and to build their confidence.
"[Kaimahi from Papakura Marae] actually there for the kids. They’re actually wanting and keen for them to do something, whether it be courses or education, helping them out with the baby and that, proper schools that she can actually go to. No other services have done that.”
MĀORI
Some whānau in Canterbury talked about Māori providers helping them address their mental health needs, being accompanied or taken to appointments and being supported in mediation and court. One parent said that, after engaging with NGO Te Ora Hou, they no longer felt alone and instead “felt powerful”.
"I’m so thankful we found Te Ora Hou, I feel safe and feel like somebody is actually on my side. When this happened, I felt like I was alone and had no understanding … When I got the help from Te Ora Hou, I felt powerful, I felt like someone was on my side, whereas [government agency], all they care about is just the child. It seems like they don’t care about you or the rest of your whānau, but with Te Ora Hou, I feel like I have a friend, I feel important.”WHĀNAU MĀORI
In Nelson, rangatahi, whānau and kaimahi from Oranga Tamariki and NZ Police spoke positively about the support received at Whakatū Marae.
"We have a good relationship with Whakatū Marae. They run the bail house contract. They’ve designed it to what’s best for them, they have a approach. The outcomes, young people are more prone to be calmer in that space. I think they’re consistent to maintaining their kaupapa. Being cut off or severed from whānau. The marae does great work in keeping contact with whānau.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI REGIONAL LEADER
A more detailed example of a collaborative intensive intervention approach is Kāhu Matarau started in Christchurch East in 2021. Kāhu Matarau was co-designed in 2019 with iwi, the local community and whānau with lived experience of the oranga tamariki system. Five community agencies chosen by whānau are involved (Aranui Community Trust, Ngā Maata Waka, Christchurch Methodist Mission, Barnardos and He Waka Tapu) as well as kaimahi from Oranga Tamariki Christchurch East and whenua, who provide input at a governance level. Together, these agencies work to improve the support provided to whānau whose tamariki and rangatahi are at most risk.
Kāhu Matarau works intensively with whānau whose needs cannot be met by another service. With whānau agreement, Oranga Tamariki refers whānau whose tamariki are at risk of coming into care or are already in care with a return home goal to Kāhu Matarau. Once the referral is made, the Oranga Tamariki social worker and their supervisor and the Kāhu Matarau kaimahi and practice leader together use the Mirimiri ā- consult tool to identify whānau needs. Kāhu Matarau allocates a kaimahi whose skills match the needs of tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau and provides intensive, intentional and practical support – for example, developing safety plans and helping whānau to understand the effects of trauma and violence on themselves and their tamariki.
Kāhu Matarau kaimahi told us that allocating a worker with the right skills to support each whānau is an essential part of the process. For example, we were told about a social worker who had a disability background whose specialist knowledge was making a difference in supporting a whānau who had neurodivergent tamariki. The social worker has “shown the whānau that things can be different”.
We also heard about the benefit to whānau of Kāhu Matarau kaimahi providing support long term and without a change of worker.
"It’s about consistency with the same person, that’s the magic. While Oranga Tamariki change social workers heaps, we don’t move on.”
KĀHU MATARAU KAIMAHI
Oranga Tamariki found similar outcomes in its evaluation of Kāhu Matarau in 2023. “A key finding is that a trusted, non-judgemental relationship, that is well-resourced, is an important lever for positive change.”87
Other results included increased safety and wellbeing for tamariki, several tamariki were supported to remain in education and attend more regularly and a number of whānau reported improved relationships with Oranga Tamariki kaimahi.
Oranga Tamariki had increased funding for iwi and Māori providers, but we recently heard about the impact of funding cuts
Hipokingia ki te Kahu Aroha, Hipokingia ki te Katoa,88 the report of the Minister for Children’s Ministerial Advisory Board, sets expectations for changes to the way Oranga Tamariki works with Māori and communities to deliver better outcomes for tamariki and whānau. The Government accepted all the recommendations of the report and Cabinet agreed to the future direction of Oranga Tamariki for the next two to five years. Recommendation 19 outlines “[t]hat, in alignment with our first recommendation,89 adequate and equitable investment in Māori collectives and communities is committed to enable Māori and communities to lead and deliver prevention of harm”.
The 2023/24 Oranga Tamariki Annual Report outlines the progress made against its appropriation measure standard A4.10 that the percentage of all service contract funding contracted with iwi and Māori organisations will be greater than 23 percent. It goes on to state that “the majority of children in care, and young people in custody, are Māori. This measurement shows our commitment to procuring iwi and Māori organisations that can play a unique role in supporting, strengthening and culturally connecting tamariki Māori, supplemented by specialist tauiwi services.”90
Outlined in section 7AA reports,91 Oranga Tamariki has made progress in this standard since 2020 by increasing its investment in contracted iwi and Māori providers. For the 2023/24 year, 33 percent of all service contract funding was with iwi and Māori organisations – an increase from 30 percent in the previous year. This spend has consistently increased since 2019 to $190.2 million in 2023/24. The number of contracts with iwi and Māori organisations has also increased since 2019 to 155 contracts in 2023/24.
Some iwi and Māori providers told us they deliver more than what they are contracted for, and Oranga Tamariki kaimahi agreed
In Taranaki-Manawatū and Canterbury, we heard examples of some iwi and Māori providers delivering additional services that were not funded as part of their contracts. This included working beyond their contracts, providing more bed placements than funded for and making cultural connections for tamariki and rangatahi Māori.
Funding models did not reflect the full extent of what iwi and Māori providers deliver such as nurturing and upholding whakapapa, and mātauranga. We heard that some current funding models undermined service provision sustainability. In one example, an iwi social service provider in Auckland said the processes they need to go through to access funding create barriers in helping tamariki and rangatahi, especially where things are needed immediately. They gave examples of the “many levels” to get funding approved for activities such as tamariki going on camp.
Flexible funding models enabled services to be more responsive
We heard some positive reports from a few about their contracts. These contracts had full-time equivalent (FTE) staff funding models,92 which they described as being flexible and enabling them to better meet needs. We heard that flexible contracts are more “youth focused and youth friendly” and enable the support whānau actually need. This flexibility gave providers the ability to manage caseloads, and flexible timeframes enabled them to build relationships. One NGO said they felt empowered by the flexibility Oranga Tamariki provided through their contract.
An Oranga Tamariki site leader from Canterbury said the FTE funding model gives flexibility to meet the “ebbs and flows” of youth justice. It enables them to respond immediately to court orders, and when providers do not have a full-time caseload, the person (funded from the FTE model) was picking up care and protection cases.
Kaimahi and leadership working as part of the Kotahi te Whakaaro initiative in Auckland spoke positively about being funded from multiple agencies and having some flexibility over how to use the funding. Because of this, the initiative can develop tailored services and provide wraparound support to whānau. Oranga Tamariki and Ministry of Education leadership spoke positively about how agencies shared financial responsibility for services and supports.
Across two regions (Canterbury and Taranaki- Manawatū), we also had positive reports about the Children’s Flexi Fund. This fund is available through NZ Police to provide services and support for tamariki and rangatahi wellbeing following family harm. We heard funding was being used for things like eye tests, glasses, mobile phones, equine therapy, and boxing lessons. It also sometimes funds assessments and support for FGCs.
"I want to put in a plug for the Children’s Flexi Fund … that funding option is making a big difference for the officers who are then available to look at the underlying causes and avenues that won’t be funded through the plan. At the moment, it’s good we have access to the Children’s Flexi Fund.”
POLICE YOUTH SERVICES KAIMAHI
We asked Oranga Tamariki about its 2024/25 contract approach and whether flexible funding models are likely to continue. It advised that the intention was to move to an outcome-based contract approach. If done, this will provide flexibility for providers to decide how they work.
Tamariki and rangatahi are impacted by gaps in services and long waitlists
Across all four regions,93 we heard about barriers to accessing support from both Oranga Tamariki contracted services as well as from other government agencies. Some barriers were consistent across regions such as long waitlists. Some were more prevalent in certain regions such as the lack of availability and variety of services, especially in rural locations and for disabled tamariki and rangatahi.
One of the main barriers we heard about was a “lack of” service provision in a region. There were some regional differences about how people described what a lack of service provision meant.
Some kaimahi and leaders from Oranga Tamariki and NZ Police (Taranaki-Manawatū and Upper South regions) spoke of waitlists and insufficient services for rangatahi in youth justice. In the Upper South region, we also heard that there are not enough services available in the area, including mentors and crisis services for whānau. In the Taranaki- Manawatū and Canterbury regions, we heard that capacity was an issue, and in Taranaki- Manawatū, this had been ongoing since 2020 due to Covid-19.
"There isn’t much [support] for mental [health]. They turned me down. Not many options, I have been through them all.”
RANGATAHI
One example we heard from NZ Police was that there was a six-month waitlist for driver licence tests in Nelson. The delays to accessing driver licensing services can put rangatahi on a “treadmill to court”. In some cases, rangatahi had to travel to Westport or Blenheim to get tested. This was seen as a lack of provision, not explicitly funding, as it was mentioned that funding is available from the Ministry of Social Development.
A regional leader from one NGO said that the provision of services for disabled tamariki can be more limited and sometimes there is additional cost to access them. They also mentioned additional barriers are faced by disabled tamariki and rangatahi, requiring advocacy.
"There is always gaps in service and things that are barriers for people. Some of it is in our control and some of it isn’t. There’s always going to be problems with transportation and money for example. There are societal attitudes against people with disabilities, those are the things we do a lot for advocacy and work towards. Oranga Tamariki are great in this space. The funds they provide us for children in care and transport needs for the caregiver, that goes a long way to supporting families, in my experience.”
NGO REGIONAL LEADER
Tamariki and rangatahi in rural areas also face additional barriers. Kaimahi and leaders from Oranga Tamariki and NZ Police from places such as Ōamaru, Ashburton, Greymouth, Levin and Pukekohe discussed similar difficulties accessing support. An Oranga Tamariki regional leader said that services can be “100km down the road” because of the size of the region.
A couple of kaimahi in Greymouth said they look for services outside of their local area when whānau have exhausted the options available locally but added there is a large financial cost associated with accessing services out of the region.
"I have a young person in Auckland who is due to come home. If my young person comes home, he will struggle. The support is high where he is but will be much lower when he comes back here. The services [in Auckland] won’t want him to come back here without support, but if the service doesn’t exist, what other option to get him home is there?”
ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI
It is sometimes difficult for Oranga Tamariki kaimahi to directly purchase services and other things tamariki and rangatahi need
In three regions, we heard about difficulties accessing funding, requests being declined and requests for small amounts going up to regional, national and sometimes to deputy chief executive level of Oranga Tamariki.
Kaimahi expressed frustration at the delays that prevented them from meeting the needs of tamariki and rangatahi, especially to reduce the risk of reoffending. A couple of site leaders said that their regional office does the best they can, but they are under a “huge amount of pressure” and are in a “lose-lose situation” with additional pressure added by the restructure at Oranga Tamariki.
In one region, we heard that a site leader funded things from their own budget because of the lack of national funding. In this example, Oranga Tamariki kaimahi spoke positively about how this site leader “was proactive, which we have never seen before” and the impact that it had on the rangatahi.
"If [the manager] had said no to any support, then this young person would have ended up back in residence or [later] jail.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI
Oranga Tamariki kaimahi from one region gave examples of financial restraints being put in place, including for things like providing food and activities for whānau connection. We heard that approval processes and thresholds have changed, meaning that access to funding is now more difficult, there are more layers of approval and everything took longer.
"The manager can’t sign anything off any more. Anything over $500, it’s now limited. Used to be able to get sign-off on activities that were $2,000–$3,000. These children should be able to experience activities that families have, but that’s not happening much any more. Yet, when money was drying out, there was other money going out during the Covid time. Oranga Tamariki turned the tap off, things are getting a bit tight.”
NGO LEADER
A couple of Oranga Tamariki kaimahi said their risk assessments for children that come into care with challenging behaviours get “questioned at every turn” by upper management.
"They don’t want to fund the level of funding these children need. They want us to change the risk assessment. So we have to balance doing a risk assessment for this child but be mindful of funding. Actually, this is not my job to manage the funding, it’s my job to manage the risk for these children. We are lucky more doesn’t go wrong.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI
Funding changes and cuts are starting to impact on services
Across all four regions monitored in this period, we heard about the impact of funding cuts and changes. This was more prevalent in the regions we visited in early 2024 (Canterbury and Tāmaki).
We heard examples of contracts being ended early, not renewed (when providers thought they would be) and funding that had been “promised” not eventuating. In one example, an NGO reported a delay of eight months for a contract renewal and another NGO said that funding was cut by 33 percent with only a few days’ notice.
An Oranga Tamariki kaimahi recently said that providers are facing uncertainty with contract renewals, and this creates difficulties for their planning and future proofing.
"Our kids are hearing on the news about funding cuts and have mentioned running away so they won’t be kicked out of here. How do you manage those conversations when they are worried about the place closing?”
KAUPAPA MĀORI ORGANISATION KAIMAHI
Several Oranga Tamariki regional and site leaders told us about “being creative” with their budgets as there “isn’t enough money to spread between everyone”. In one recent example, funding was shifted and repurposed to support tamariki and rangatahi.
"Oranga Tamariki are funding about 30 percent of the work that we do – we’re actually using our [Ministry of Social Development] crisis funding for adults to do [the sex health programme]. We recently have been doing some work for Oranga Tamariki with kids who have problematic sexual behaviour, but that’s not funded by Oranga Tamariki. We know that those who have experienced sexual abuse have higher rate of causing sexual harm.”NGO KAIMAHI
At the end of 2024, we heard more examples of the impact of funding cuts in our monitoring in Bay of Plenty and Central Plateau, especially impacts felt by tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau.
Many community organisations told us that, due to cuts to their contracts, they are having to be “creative” to fund their work, with some organisations working without funding, some working above and beyond their funding and others facing cuts and scaling back their services. They spoke about the “sizeable” impact of continued contract uncertainty, with some still unclear on proposed changes and timeframes and working without funding months into the 2024/25 financial year.
The contract changes are also impacting on local relationships, with some Oranga Tamariki kaimahi telling us about the negative impact on their relationships with iwi and Māori providers. Also during engagements, several strategic partners told us about the impact that funding cuts were having across their communities and their own service delivery. Additionally, some providers spoke about funding cuts more broadly across the oranga tamariki system and agencies withdrawing to core business, often at the expense of collaborative work. At a time when Oranga Tamariki is wanting to progress the devolution of services to iwi and Māori, progress is likely to be hampered if services that are relied on by tamariki and rangatahi Māori (from all providers) are being impacted.
In October 2024, the Auditor-General announced an inquiry into the procurement and contract management practices of Oranga Tamariki. The focus of the inquiry is on the processes, decisions and actions of Oranga Tamariki between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.94 A report will be published once the inquiry is complete and tabled in Parliament.
83 Through appropriations within Vote Oranga Tamariki. Appropriations are parliamentary authorisation for the Crown or an Office of Parliament to incur expenses or capital expenditure that are administered by Ministers of the Crown or the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
84 See footnote 77.
85 Oranga Tamariki. (2024). Strategic intentions 2024/25–2029/30 (p. 29). https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Aboutus/ Corporate-reports/Strategic-intentions/Strategic-Intentions-2024-2029.pdf
86 https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/support-for-families/support-programmes/family-start/
87 Goodwin, D., Atkinson, M., & McKegg, K. (2023). Kahu Matarau – Learning and insights in a collaborative initiative to provide intensive response – first year of implementation. Oranga Tamariki (p. 2). https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/ Research/Latest-research/Intensive-Response-Developmental-Evaluation/Intensive-Response-Kahu-Matarau-implementation- Sept23.pdf
88 Ministerial Advisory Board. (2021). Hipokingia ki te kahu aroha, hipokingia ki te katoa. Oranga Tamariki. https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2021-09/SWRB082-OT-Report-FA-ENG-WEB.PDF
89 That the Minister for Children and the Chief Executive of Oranga Tamariki, supported by the Board, undertake a programme of community engagement to facilitate planning as to how Maori collectives and communities will lead prevention of harm to and their whanau
90 See footnote 77 (p. 66).
91 See footnote 55.
92 This funding model pays a provider a consistent rate for an agreed number of full-time equivalent staff (FTE). This model can provide more flexibility than a volume-based funding model, so that providers can tailor their services to meet the complex and diverse needs of whanau.
93 Auckland, Canterbury, Taranaki-Manawatu and Upper South.
94 https://oag.parliament.nz/media/2024/oranga-tamariki