Youth justice intervention

The youth justice system is distinct from the adult criminal justice system. It is administered by NZ Police and Oranga Tamariki under the Oranga Tamariki Act. It deals with serious offending by tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary aged 10–13 and all offending for rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary aged 14–17.

The vast majority of tamariki and rangatahi in New Zealand have no contact with the youth justice system. In 2023/24, 98 percent of tamariki Māori and 95 percent of rangatahi Māori had no police proceedings¹³² against them.¹³³

However, when they do have contact, Māori are over-represented in the youth justice population. Tamariki and rangatahi Māori represent 28 percent of the total New Zealand youth population but 41 percent of tamariki and rangatahi proceeded against by police.¹³⁴

In 2023/24 tamariki and rangatahi Māori comprised

• 28% of the youth population
• 41% of tamariki and rangatahi proceeded against by Police.

Of the 2023/24 police proceedings taken against tamariki and rangatahi in response to instances of offending, 50 percent were against tamariki and rangatahi Māori.¹³⁵ 

Over-representation has been the cause of significant concern for many years, including from international human rights bodies.¹³⁶ It has also been the focus of decades of research that found Māori are over-represented in areas of socio-economic disadvantage. In 2007, the Department of Corrections noted that this does not imply that ethnicity in and of itself is a key factor in offending but that it “implies that the access of Māori to the key services of health, social support and education, and the effectiveness of those services for Māori, is of crucial importance in reducing disadvantage and the problems it confers, including heightened risk of criminality”.¹³⁷ Most indicators of socio-economic disadvantage show that little has changed since then. 

NZ Police is working to address the overrepresentation of Māori in the criminal justice system through its strategy Te Huringa o Te Tai. This follows an earlier strategy document, The turning of the tide launched in 2012, with the primary focus “to address the longstanding overrepresentation of Māori in the criminal justice system through a whānau ora approach to crime prevention”.¹³⁸ With “strategic pou” (on people and mindset, effective initiatives and practice, and effective partnerships), the strategy aims to improve the wellbeing and lives of Māori.

Independent research on aspects of police delivery, including potential bias behind individual police decisions, has been published by NZ Police. A 2024 study, for example, found that sex and ethnicity affect the prosecution decision for certain offences or types of crime and that “the odds of prosecution for Māori were greater than for Europeans for some, but not all offence types measured”.¹³⁹ All other things being equal, Māori are 11 percent more likely to be prosecuted than NZ Europeans/ Pākehā.¹⁴⁰ Reports in this series also show that bias and structural racism are some of the reasons why Māori men are more likely to be stopped, prosecuted and tasered.¹⁴¹ 

NZ Police has also worked to increase the ethnic diversity of its kaimahi, with the most recent annual report showing an increase in the proportion of kaimahi Māori from 11.9 percent in 2019 to 13.7 percent in 2024.¹⁴² 

In this report, we focus on tamariki and rangatahi Māori who offended but were not given a custodial sentence and on agency efforts to prevent these tamariki and rangatahi escalating through the system. Escalation through the youth justice system is, for some, a pathway to adult criminal offending. This is reflected in the Oranga Tamariki Act, which includes principles stating that youth offending should be treated in a way that promotes the best interests of tamariki and rangatahi (section 4A), with criminal proceedings being avoided and remaining in the community wherever possible. Efforts should also be made to strengthen family and whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary (section 208). 

As well as these legal principles, Oranga Tamariki has a manaClosemana
Prestige, authority, control, power, influence, status, spiritual power, charismaView the full glossary tamaiti objective to prevent children being taken into care or youth justice custody by strengthening whānau Māori to care for their tamariki and rangatahi. Oranga Tamariki uses its five mana tamaiti principles to measure the impacts of its activities on tamariki and rangatahi Māori.¹⁴³ 

TamarikiCloseTamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary proceeded against often have complex needs, which can be among the underlying causes of their offending. Ministry of Justice youth justice indicators show that 92 percent of tamariki and rangatahi Māori referred for a youth justice family group conference in 2023/24 had a previous care and protection report of concern.¹⁴⁴

The link between unmet care and protection need and offending is well known.¹⁴⁵ A 2022 study using data from the IDI and Oranga Tamariki case file analysis looked in detail at tamariki who offended between the ages of 10 and 13 in AotearoaCloseAotearoa
New ZealandView the full glossary in 2019/20 and found significant care and protection concerns. These tamariki experienced high levels of abuse, reports of concern, out-of-home placements, school stand-downs and suspensions, and indicators of social and cultural deprivation compared to their non-offending peers.¹⁴⁶ In particular, the study found that:

• tamariki who were abused under the age of 5 were six times more likely to offend as tamariki or rangatahi than those who had not been abused 
• neglect before the age of 5 is associated with offending as tamariki or rangatahi
• rangatahi who had offended had an average of 2.18 reports of concern before the age of 5, an average of 3.82 between the ages of 5 and 10, and an average of 3.77 between the ages of 10 and 14¹⁴⁷
• tamariki who had a report of concern before the age of 5 and who offended as tamariki were more likely to reoffend as rangatahi (73%)
• most tamariki who offended had had at least one care and protection FGC – some had as many as four care and protection FGCs before the age 14.

The study also showed offending is more likely in tamariki who have had justice-involved parents¹⁴⁸ and/or who have been stood down or suspended from school before the age of 10.¹⁴⁹

Other New Zealand research has found a link between criminal offending and disabilities such as foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). A 2020 study, for example, referred to “extremely high ratios of justice system contact for young people with FASD when compared to the general population”.¹⁵⁰ This is largely due to FASD being associated with poor impulse control and emotional lability. It raises questions about appropriate services and supports for tamariki and rangatahi with FASD and similar conditions.

Taken together, these studies provide evidence that rangatahi and tamariki involved in offending face significant challenges. During our 2023/24 engagements, we heard from police kaimahi and some rangatahi who reflected on their childhoods and their future aspirations.

"When I first transferred to Youth Prosecutions, two things stood out. The first was the number of times I looked down the back of the Court and there were no family members supporting the young person. The second was how often there was a [child protection] file where the young person had reported assaults by a parent and caregiver as a child.”
POLICE KAIMAHI, CANTERBURY

"[In future, I want a] family. Rich family. [I do not want them to] have to deal with what I’ve dealt with. Being brought up in a shit environment. My one brother and little cousin – he’s in [a youth justice residence], another little cousin in [a youth justice residence]. My brother is in [a care and protection residence], he’s only 13.”
RANGATAHI 

Data shows there are opportunities to provide early support because almost all tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary who offend were known to government agencies many years earlier.

Both Oranga Tamariki and NZ Police recognise that tamariki and rangatahi who offend have unmet care and protection needs. NZ Police states that it is “acutely aware children who offend have other underlying care and protection needs” and that “the primary goal in addressing accountability for children is not punitive but to help them understand the consequences and impact of their actions, support their personal growth and oranga within the context of whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary and family, as well as reduce the likelihood of further offending”.¹⁵¹

Oranga Tamariki states that “when offending behaviours start in childhood, early interventions need to focus on the underlying care and protection concerns” and that “all young offenders must have a needs assessment undertaken to understand the risks, needs, challenges and strengths of the rangatahi, their parents/caregivers, and their whānau or family”.¹⁵²

What is missing – and what the information from Oranga Tamariki does not provide – is an assurance that early care and protection needs are being met. As discussed earlier in relation to FGCs, for many tamariki and rangatahi, it is their offending behaviours that trigger access to services and supports rather than care and protection needs that were known many years earlier. Our report Towards a stronger safety net to prevent abuse of children,¹⁵³ raises issues about the way in which reports of concern are responded to by Oranga Tamariki and whether early warning signs are adequately addressed. 

When we talked with kaimahi working in youth justice at Oranga Tamariki and in other organisations, we heard that a lack of resources, limited staff capacity at Oranga Tamariki and high thresholds for supports mean it is difficult for care and protection needs to be fully met. 

"I feel it goes right back to the initial care and protection plans. Most of the kids we have have had care and protection several times, had they been more resourced in that space – because most of [the cases] close at the intake and assessment stage, so [whānau, tamariki and rangatahi] miss out on the comprehensive support. Then [tamariki and rangatahi] get to youth justice ...”
ORANGA TAMARIKI LEADER 

"I do lots of work in the YJ [youth justice] sector. What really gets me are all of these [care and protection] issues that end up being YJ cases. We are trying to prevent this occurring. If we get in early, we don’t need as much YJ.”
HEALTH KAIMAHI 

"Kids are being criminalised because they are not getting the support they need. We are trying to do our job to keep our community safe.”
POLICE LEADER 

"Care and protection problems. ROCs [reports of concern] are put through and Oranga Tamariki simply ... don’t have the resources to follow these up and our staff are left to carry the can and ensure there is protection for those youth.”
POLICE REGIONAL LEADER 

This aligns with our Experiences of Care in AotearoaCloseAotearoa
New ZealandView the full glossary reports, where we have often heard from care and protection kaimahi about the challenges of resourcing to meet the needs of tamariki and rangatahi involved in care and protection. 

Some youth justice kaimahi told us that Oranga Tamariki care and protection teams were not taking responsibility to provide early, comprehensive or ongoing care and protection support. 

"Thinking about one of my kids who just turned 13, he has both youth justice and care and protection orders. When I think about how I’ve made decisions for him, it’s based on a care and protection scope as well. Now, youth justice has to take the lead because their [care and protection] resources are too strained. While a 13-yearold should be [approached] with care and protection first and foremost but [the care team] can’t because of [lack of] resources … It’s like Family Court is not okay because we are so sensitive about it, which I understand. It’s like [Oranga Tamariki] can criminalise [rangatahi] and put them in the youth justice residence.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI YOUTH JUSTICE SOCIAL WORKER 

We also heard from some kaimahi that Oranga Tamariki does not communicate about cases externally with police kaimahi or internally between youth justice and care and protection teams. This hinders timely support. 

"[Care and protection and youth justice] do not talk to each other – we are the [conduit] between the two of them and this should not be the case.”
POLICE LEADER

"There is a huge disconnect, no interaction between care and protection and youth justice, they are on a different floor … Youth justice is frustrated. Often, they look at [cases] and wonder why what happened wasn’t dealt with before. And then care and protection almost have a sigh of relief when the youth offends as they can hand it over.”
POLICE KAIMAHI

During our engagements, social workers from Oranga Tamariki generally reported good relationships between youth justice and care and protection teams, with a small number of exceptions at site level. Where we heard that Oranga Tamariki teams were not working together, these were due to perceived competition for resources to support tamariki and rangatahi.

Addressing care and protection needs often requires a cross-agency response, but the strained capacity of social workers at Oranga Tamariki and on wider service provision in areas such as mental health and wider whānau support is one of the issues raised in our latest Experiences of Care in Aotearoa report¹⁵⁴ as well as our in-depth review, Towards a stronger safety net to prevent abuse of children.¹⁵⁵

A 2021 report from Oranga Tamariki on youth justice pathways examining data on tamariki and rangatahi born between 1993 and 2002 found that “[y]oung people involved in youth justice deal with a range of complex factors and often have contact with many government agencies years before entering youth justice. This suggests there is an opportunity for early cross-agency support which could prevent involvement with youth justice”.¹⁵⁶

As noted in the 2022 study of tamariki aged 10–13 who offended, there had “often been years of reports of concern and notifications from infancy, incidents of offending by older siblings, justice-involved parents, many failed placements, and issues with school suspension and disengagement. Yet, despite their needs being known to services, the children had proceeded to offending before age 14.”¹⁵⁷

It should not take offending to get the help and support that was needed much sooner.

Police data records “proceedings” taken against people who have offended or are suspected of having offended. A proceeding is essentially a police decision. It can have a wide range of outcomes, including no further action, a warning, a referral to specific services, prosecution and custody admission. We use the term ‘proceeding’ in this report when we refer to NZ Police data.

NZ Police data for 2023/24¹⁵⁸ shows that tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary Māori are more likely to be proceeded against compared to the total youth population.¹⁵⁹ For example, the youth justice indicators summary report published in December 2024 states that “rangatahi Māori are more likely to have court action” (33 percent of rangatahi Māori proceeded against compared to 25 percent of the total youth population).¹⁶⁰

This disparity has persisted for more than a decade despite the emphasis NZ Police places on its decisions being made impartially and in line with legislation and a range of policies, checklists, tools and checks with senior colleagues. Our analysis of NZ Police data shows that the number of tamariki and rangatahi proceeded against has increased by 16 percent over the past three years to a total of almost 8,500 in 2023/24. Over the same period, the number of tamariki and rangatahi with unknown ethnicity increased by two-thirds to make up 31 percent of the total.

This high incidence of tamariki and rangatahi with unknown ethnicity makes it difficult to see the full picture and to understand how disparity is changing with the increase in the number of tamariki and rangatahi.¹⁶¹

Tamariki aged 10–13 can only be charged with certain serious offences. For this reason, some police proceedings do not apply to these tamariki.

The data also shows that around one in five proceeded against in 2023/24 were aged 10–13. It is critical that offending in this age group is responded to well in order to reverse a pathway towards more serious offending. 

In addition, when we look at both age and ethnicity, we can see that half of tamariki aged 10–13 proceeded against in 2023/24 were Māori. This disparity is higher than in other age groups.

Overall, the average age is 15 for all rangatahi at their first proceeding but 14 for rangatahi Māori. 

Almost two-thirds (64 percent) of the 14,704 proceedings in 2023/24 were against those tamariki and rangatahi who repeatedly offended. This includes repeated offences from previous years as well as those who were first proceeded against in 2023/24 and who went on to reoffend within the same period. Disparity gets worse if first offending is not successfully addressed – 61 percent of subsequent proceedings in 2023/24 were against tamariki and rangatahi Māori. Repeat offending may occur because responses to initial offending have not been sufficient to meet tamariki and rangatahi needs and ensure accountability for offending. Across their lifetime, for tamariki and rangatahi Māori who had proceedings against them in 2023/24: 

• almost one-third (31 percent) had one proceeding by the end of the reporting period compared to 44 percent of non-Māori and 74 percent where ethnicity is unknown 
• just over half (52 percent) had between two and nine proceeding occasions by the end of the reporting period compared to 46 percent of non-Māori, and 25 percent where ethnicity is unknown 
• 17 percent had 10 or more proceeding occasions by the end of the reporting period compared to 10 percent of non-Māori.¹⁶²

Tamariki aged 10–13 can only be charged with certain serious offences. For this reason, some police proceedings do not apply to these tamariki.

In general, there is variation in the way police respond to Māori and non-Māori. Where disparities are most evident is at the more serious end. Tamariki Māori are less likely to be referred to alternative action or given a warning, and more likely to be prosecuted or referred to a youth justice FGC.¹⁶⁵

NZ Police data shows rangatahi Māori aged 14–17 were more likely to be prosecuted in 2023/24, and less likely to get a warning or referred to alternative action than others.

We also looked at the severity of offences measured by NZ Police National Offence Index (NOI) rankings, which we grouped together to enable this analysis,¹⁶⁸ and repeat offences as these are factors that can reasonably be expected to impact on the method of proceedings. For this analysis, we excluded tamariki and rangatahi whose ethnicity is unknown and compared proceedings taken against tamariki and rangatahi who were known to be Māori and known to be non-Māori.

Even after accounting for severity of offences and repeat offending,¹⁶⁹ across most NOI ranking groups and numbers of proceedings, NZ Police data still shows tamariki and rangatahi Māori were less likely to be given a warning or referred to alternative action than non-Māori.

It also showed tamariki and rangatahi Māori were more likely to be given no further action.¹⁷⁰ NZ Police told us this is because it receives more reports and/or complaints about tamariki and rangatahi Māori that, after investigation, are closed with no further action by youth services kaimahi.¹⁷¹

We heard from kaimahi that police responses differ from region to region

We heard about regional differences in the way police respond to crime. For example, Oranga Tamariki kaimahi told us car crime is dealt with more punitively by police in Canterbury compared to other districts.

"First 15 years I was here, half of our caseload was informal, which didn’t go anywhere near the courts and maybe 40 percent was in the court. For us to now have 90 percent of our caseload in the court – all this work that needs to happen. [That increase is related to] police behaviour and how they charge car crime. You get arrested for it. [Even just for] sitting in the car [regardless of whether] you took it.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI YOUTH JUSTICE LEADER

"You are held on remand for this [car offending] rather than if you assault or rape someone.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI YOUTH JUSTICE LEADER

Tamariki and rangatahi Māori in Canterbury make up 18 percent of the total regional population of young people (similar to Auckland at 19 percent). Regional NZ Police data shows that, in Canterbury in 2023/24, the proportion of police proceedings against tamariki and rangatahi Māori (at 34 percent of total proceedings) was one of the lowest regional proportions.

When we spoke with regional police leaders in the areas we visited, some told us they were concerned about the “public expectation to crack the whip” and pressure to focus on youth crime, including retail crime (“ram raids”). For example, in one region we heard that public expectations for more punitive measures against rangatahi were seen to be influencing the mindset of police kaimahi in their regions. They also noted this expectation goes against the principles of the Oranga Tamariki Act. 

NZ Police National Headquarters also acknowledged that there might be some regional variation, stating that there “is an expectation Districts lead the youth space as they see fit”,¹⁷² which is in terms of there being no one-size-fits-all approach for rangatahi, and that the manner in which legislation, policy and practice are applied “depends on the circumstances of the individual and their whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary”.¹⁷³

Police kaimahi also acknowledge that police districts are independent of NZ Police National Headquarters and under the control of the respective area commander. This may account for some regional differences in police responses to tamariki and rangatahi offending. 

We also heard from police kaimahi that, as agents of the court, they are guided by court decisions. Regional variations in court rulings may influence local police decisions on whether to prosecute. Conversely, we heard from some Oranga Tamariki kaimahi that police views may hold more weight in court. 

"I also think the increase is around police and judiciary being risk adverse. We see a lot more young people for lower-level offending being remanded in custody, and we are dealing with a younger age group too. It used to be 16 and 17-year-olds featuring in that space but now it’s 12 and 13-year-olds. The police view is opposition to bail as the rule rather than the exception and judges tend to go with police view. It used to be that a social worker could advocate but not any more.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI REGIONAL LEADER 

At all levels of the organisation, NZ Police believe its decisions are consistent and impartial

Despite the disparities and regional differences in police proceedings, we consistently heard from NZ Police that decisions are guided by practices and tools that enforce standardisation, consistency and impartiality. 

NZ Police National Headquarters kaimahi said its youth services team provides training and guidance on the policing of young people who offend, typically to district youth services teams, which oversee most police matters relating to rangatahi. The national youth services team also completes a quality assurance and improvement framework on the NZ Police youth database to ensure consistency and that the “application of responses is in line with legislation and policy”.¹⁷⁴ We also heard that the recruitment training at the Royal New Zealand Police College provides a foundational set of skills and knowledge to support kaimahi when they are on the frontline. Initial training includes modules on bias, ethics, neuroscience, adverse childhood experiences, diversity and ethnicity and specific modules on dealing with population groups including Māori, Pacific and ethnic communities and youth. 

At an individual level, police officers use the Youth Offending Risk Screening Tool (YORST) as an indicator of the likelihood that tamariki and rangatahi will reoffend. The YORST is used “to collect standardised information, identify the appropriate response to offending and to enable information sharing” with other agencies.¹⁷⁵

In our engagements in the regions visited during 2023/24, police officers described a number of tools and processes that help them make standardised, impartial decisions. For example, police officers in the Auckland region told us about the NZ Police youth database, which allows the sharing of up-to-date information about rangatahi who have or may have offended and that can help guide frontline staff, particularly if Youth Aid colleagues are not available at night. We also heard from police in Auckland about specific tools to help assess situations and identify an appropriate response around pursuits, arrests and the use of force.¹⁷⁶ A regional leader in Auckland discussed a “toolbox” available on police phones that contains Youth Aid training videos, QR code links to legislation and contact details of senior colleagues who can be accessed for quick support on the frontline.

We heard from police about the success of specific initiatives such as Blue Light and Blue Reel,¹⁷⁷ both of which support rangatahi to stop offending. 

"These are programmes we do to help show a better way to live. It can be taught and demonstrated.”
POLICE YOUTH AID KAIMAHI 

In our recent visit to Bay of Plenty, we heard the Blue Light programme could not accept further referrals as funding has been cut. 

In Canterbury we heard about a guided process when working with rangatahi in relation to arresting and charging for an offence. Canterbury police kaimahi also mentioned a youth justice checklist that “lays everything out” and guides what steps police kaimahi must take to ensure the rights of rangatahi are upheld. Other supports mentioned were the Investigation Management Tool, which enables decisions to be informed by senior and detective sergeants, and the WEEP¹⁷⁸ guidelines related to rangatahi and section 214 of the Oranga Tamariki Act. 

In Taranaki-Manawatū we also heard about app-based support for frontline decision making, and, in the Upper South region, a police leader shared that the custody process has moved from paper-based to electronic, enabling better recording of information and ensuring that “policy and law is followed”. 

NZ Police, as an organisation, has put considerable efforts into supporting frontline kaimahi to make consistent, impartial decisions in response to tamariki and rangatahi coming to their attention. However, there may be other factors affecting the way in which police kaimahi deal with tamariki and rangatahi Māori. 

Police kaimahi identified barriers in dealing with tamariki and rangatahi Māori

We heard mixed views from police kaimahi about ethnicity being a consideration when decisions are made about individual responses. Some said that ethnicity is not a consideration, and should not be, because everyone should be treated equally. However, other police kaimahi recognise the value of a culturally appropriate response and expressed concern about their colleagues’ lack of cultural responsiveness. We saw this particularly in the Canterbury region. 

"Everybody is treated with respect, and equally.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

"Cultural consideration, it’s a nice buzzword.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

"So, this place is a bit vanilla right, teasing the Māori here. [Police kaimahi say things like] ’you’re the honkiest Māori I’ve ever met’ … it concerns me about government rhetoric. Saying everyone is equal, but not everyone is on the same start line … playing it out in the frontline, I don’t think they treat a Māori youth offender different to a Pākehā or Pasifika or Asian offender. The difference is to try harder for Māori. [Another Police district] has got that. You felt and saw it … acknowledging that [Māori youth offenders] are disconnected from their tūrangawaewae (home base) and get them back in and give them change.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER 

Both police and Oranga Tamariki kaimahi spoke of a need for more in-depth cultural competency training for police kaimahi. They pointed out that further training, outside of the initial training provided at the Royal New Zealand Police College, is mostly voluntary and external. 

We also heard that frontline police kaimahi are not always confident in working with rangatahi or in implementing the Oranga Tamariki Act. This lack of confidence was attributed to a lack of youth-focused training for frontline kaimahi as well as the police practice of rotating staff. These rotations mean that kaimahi with youth experience and community relationships are rotated out into other roles. It inevitably takes time for kaimahi coming into a new role to build up community relationships with both providers and whānau, and frequent changes in police kaimahi can damage relationships and trust. 

"[The impact of staff rotating out] is a challenge for [the Youth Aid team], and when you lose that experience, it is tricky to bring new Youth Aid staff up to date quickly.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER 

"Part of the process [for a Youth Aid officer being able to go on that course] is he had to go to a different unit once he finished, so we have a new person and they have to start fresh.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

Some regions do not have strong youth experience in their leadership positions, and this can influence how police teams respond to and are supported to work with tamariki and rangatahi. 

"We have Criminal Investigation Branch experience, for example, but not youthspecific experience. Without that expertise, we are against it. As a result, the leadership group suffers. I had no youth experience in the leadership space when I first started two years ago, and it took me a while to gain it. If there was one thing I could suggest, it would be encouraging Youth sergeants to move to the higher leadership levels to bring their passion and expertise.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER 

The value of youth-specific training and knowledge was recognised by some police leaders. 

"I don’t know what training they get at Police College to work with kids. [Tamariki and rangatahi] know the difference if we do not have the skills. Kids pick it in a minute if you are not working alongside them.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER 

Unsurprisingly, we heard from other professionals that when police kaimahi know their communities, better outcomes can be achieved for tamariki and rangatahi. 

"I do notice a difference with the more rural police … and that’s another thing because mostly they are well entrenched in the communities. I’m not saying our cops here aren’t but, you know, [in a] small community, everybody knows each other, so they’re part of that.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI LEADER 

Youth Aid is a strength for police working with tamariki and rangatahi

Youth Aid kaimahi are trained over two years, on top of the initial training required to become police kaimahi, to work proactively with tamariki, rangatahi and whānau. Youth Aid kaimahi share information with frontline kaimahi to help determine the best intervention for tamariki and rangatahi who have offended or are suspected of having offended. 

In all the regions we visited, we heard that support from Youth Aid assists police kaimahi in making informed decisions about arresting and charging tamariki and rangatahi. Youth Aid is seen as a crucial resource for frontline officers. 

We heard numerous examples from police kaimahi about the value of Youth Aid. For instance, Youth Aid and frontline officers in Auckland have good working relationships that mean “robust conversations” will occur to determine whether rangatahi will progress to alternative action, FGC or court. In Taranaki- Manawatū, we heard that consultation with Youth Aid supports frontline kaimahi in understanding the Oranga Tamariki Act and that Youth Aid kaimahi are seen as experts and sources of trusted advice. In the Upper South region, we heard that Youth Aid kaimahi offer support when new police kaimahi do not have the confidence to engage with tamariki and rangatahi. 

"If [frontline police officers] are not sure, we talk with Youth Aid. We try and talk to [Youth Aid] to consider their thoughts and opinions on the kids. We have a really good working relationship with that team.”
POLICE OFFICER 

"Other cops will come to Youth Aid to ask about things. We can always refer back to the legislation, the first half care and protection and second youth justice. It’s really clear and practical.”
POLICE YOUTH AID OFFICER 

"[Police] staff trust Youth Aid’s decision. [The] frontline sergeant will seek advice from Youth Aid for that.”
POLICE LEADER

"I will always discuss with supervisors or the Youth Aid officer – to get that second opinion – I will never just charge off. It’s that different perspective on whatever you are dealing with [because] every case is different too.”
POLICE OFFICER 

"In my experience, Youth Aid officers become really good at building relationships. You will find a lot of kids have real respect for their Youth Aid officers because they are always there for them. Kids see them as a person in their camp. I am trying to spread the influence that my Youth Aid team has to a broader group, so we can stop them needing to go to court later down the track.”
POLICE LEADER 

Some rangatahi and whānau also spoke positively about the work their Youth Aid officer does to ensure their FGC plan will meet their needs. 

"[Youth Aid officer] makes sure that the [FGC] plan works with me, making sure I don’t get any trouble with certain people, make sure I don’t risk my chances of getting into trouble in Youth Court.” RANGATAHI 

"[Youth Aid officer] helped me by giving me a curfew and gave me the letters to write out for the people I stole from ... He keeps me in place pretty much and keeps me where I should be on the right path and not doing bad stuff.”
RANGATAHI 

"The [Oranga Tamariki social worker and Youth Aid officer] came together and said, ‘let’s make a plan together, something that works and something that we want’.”
WHĀNAUCloseWHĀNAU
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary 

Across all regions, having experienced and confident Youth Aid officers who understand their communities, rangatahi and the legislation ensures they can think creatively about how best to support rangatahi who have offended. This includes the use of regional initiatives, alternative action, FGCs and other non-punitive pathways to support. 

However, we heard from some frontline police kaimahi in Auckland that Youth Aid kaimahi aren’t available at night, which is a barrier to decision making with fewer available options for services. 

Māori liaison roles are also seen as an enabler for police working with tamariki and rangatahi Māori

In our regional engagements, we also heard about the value police kaimahi place on Māori liaison roles (although these are not in place across the country) and on relationships with Māori providers and community organisations to provide services and supports for tamariki and rangatahi Māori. 

We heard one example from the Upper South region where the regional Māori Liaison Team will look through records weekly to identify missed opportunities for alternative action. We also heard an example of a whānau who had pushed for a discharge without conviction for their rangatahi, and on review of the case, this was granted as police found the rangatahi had been the “victim of some over exuberant policing”. We were told that cases such as this one are added to the NZ Police “Lessons Learned” database to ensure police kaimahi learn from previous cases. 

Tamariki and rangatahi Māori told us that police sometimes use force that is excessive

When we spoke with tamariki and rangatahi Māori who’d been involved with youth justice intervention in the regions we visited, several voiced concerns about the use of force and physical restraints. 

"Another time, we were all just there and lined up, and the dog was let on one of my friends and he was on his knees and they let the dog at him and it bit his hand.”
RANGATAHI 

"The police got to do what they got to do, but there was one time when I wasn’t resisting, and they were putting their knee on my head when I was on the ground, They said ‘get on the ground’ and they kept putting their knee on my body and hurting me and getting smart to me.”
RANGATAHI 

"One night, [the police] came and done a search warrant and put mum through handcuffs while she was in her undies and stuff … and [mum] didn’t deserve it. I got upset cos it wasn’t for her.”
RANGATAHI 

We asked the IPCA for information about complaints made in 2023/24 about police dealings with tamariki and rangatahi. Although the IPCA was unable to provide data on the ethnicity or age of complainants,¹⁷⁹ its data showed that 69 complaints were made during the reporting period about police actions in relation to care and protection or youth justice matters. Of those, 27 were about police’s use of force, five were about police attitudes, and one was about police harassment of a rangatahi.¹⁸⁰ However, the IPCA also provided the context that it receives around 4,500 complaints about police every year.

Some tamariki and rangatahi Māori also spoke with us about being laughed at by police kaimahi and feeling that they don’t take the time to understand what’s going on for tamariki and rangatahi when they offend or are thought to have offended. In Taranaki-Manawatū, some rangatahi told us police kaimahi don’t try to understand why people “play up” or fail to see that some rangatahi are at their lowest when they do. One rangatahi Māori felt targeted by police kaimahi and another felt they “gave up” on them. 

Some whānau Māori spoke positively about police

We spoke with a small number of whānau Māori whose tamariki and rangatahi were involved in youth justice intervention. They were generally positive about the way in which police had interacted and felt that their tamariki and rangatahi had been supported by police in these interactions even if the outcome had not been a good one.

"I was impressed with the police in Blenheim. At the FGC, the police person was kind and understood the reasons that [rangatahi] was offending. They called me when his mum was coming to their attention. Maybe it’s because it’s a small town and [the police] try and work with whānau rather than against them.”
WHĀNAU 

"Yeah, so it’s quite extreme, police keep coming over all the time. But in saying that, there was this one police officer. She was very supportive. I’ve been working with her for about a year and bit now, but I think she’s being deferred? I think she’s the family police or constable, she was the one who got all these support services in place to help support us.”
WHĀNAU

As discussed earlier in this report, successful initiatives are often those that bring government and community agencies together and offer holistic services and supports to tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary, rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary and whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary. This is more important in youth justice intervention because of the connection between youth offending and unmet care and protection needs.

There is also evidence to suggest that connecting rangatahi Māori who have offended to te ao MāoriClosete ao Māori
The Māori worldView the full glossary and to their own iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary and/or hapūClosehapū
Sub-tribeView the full glossary can be transformative.¹⁸¹ For example, Paiheretia te Muka Tāngata uses a Whānau Ora approach to support tāne Māori (including younger tāne) in prison and has been shown to be effective.

As noted in research by Oranga Tamariki, using kaupapa Māori models that make sense to Māori is vital to the development and delivery of responses that support reducing disparities between Māori and non-Māori in the youth justice system.¹⁸² This echoes decades of advocacy, including from Tā (Sir) Mason Durie, for service delivery to consider Māori approaches and worldviews as critical.

We heard about initiatives that offer tamariki and rangatahi these holistic supports, in particular from Māori providers.

In Taranaki-Manawatū, we heard that police had engaged with several iwi across the region, and as a result had benefited from working closely with the local Whānua Ora alliance. Working in partnership with the iwi and Māori organisations had resulted in crossagency initiatives aimed at reducing harm and supporting rangatahi across the region. 

"We have a number of iwi across the Manawatū. Most of the iwi have responsibilities with [Te Tihi o Ruahine Whānau Ora Alliance]. Under the alliance, all the Māori service providers across the Manawatū district – Rangitāne, Te Kauwhata, home iwi providers – all the practitioners, all use the same model of engagement. The alliance was formed to bring all the services together. The alliance takes the contracts and that’s worked well for us. It means we are a member of the Whānau Ora group.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER 

"We have collaboration across agencies, communities and iwi – we are working with the Māori Wardens to come up with models to reduce the harm and secondly to support the young people.”
REGIONAL POLICE LEADER

In the Canterbury region, police kaimahi noted the positive relationship they have with local iwi, which allows them to provide for whānau Māori families and their needs more effectively. 

"I’ve found the iwi here are great. A family here wanted the cultural input but the [non- Māori] mother did not want contact with her ex so the iwi has helped to create the bridge for the child with the child’s father [who is Māori].”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

"[Cultural roles] have been here for a year and he’s making a big difference. Most sergeants have their numbers and can make contact at any time.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

In the Upper South region, police kaimahi told us about a local initiative with family harm teams where kai boxes help to remove negative feelings people may experience with being visited by police. 

"We had an offender, we dropped him off, we gave him some kai, and the guy almost cried, as it was the first person to do that from the police. Normally it’s us locking him up. So, it is really great at connecting with the community. We keep sowing the seed to take the kai.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

Some tamariki, rangatahi and whānau Māori also spoke positively about the youth justice intervention support they receive. Rangatahi Māori told us about mentoring services in particular. A couple of rangatahi Māori said their mentors were important in helping them “keep out of trouble”, and some spoke about their mentors helping them with activities, jobs and education support. One rangatahi said the support from Whakatū Marae helps “keep me busy not offending”. 

"Whakatū Marae is good. They keep me busy not offending. We shelled kina, they take me out, get me haircuts and stuff like that, bowling, golf. Keeps me out of trouble.”
RANGATAHI 

One whānau member said they could access a range of services and support through Whakapai Hauora,¹⁸³ including getting a driver licence for their rangatahi, access to doctors and counselling support, support for rangatahi to do community service hours and connecting them to other services and organisations in the community. 

A couple of rangatahi Māori spoke of the positive impact of getting a licence, and said it helped them stop offending. 

"I got my licence through [Te Ora Hou]. If I didn’t [get a licence], I wouldn’t have stopped.”
RANGATAHI 

We also heard from rangatahi about the importance of education. 

"I hated school before I came here. I used to wag, fight with teachers. Here I knuckled down, got [NCEA] level 1 and level 2 yesterday. I am going for level 3 by the end of the year. I want to get it by the end of the year. Get it done when I can.”
RANGATAHI 

"I have to dedicate myself to stuff to be successful … like what 15-year-old wants to be locked up? Been in since 12 [at name of residence] now. I’m cracking it, I’m in [polytechnic], I got a job, I’m getting [NCEA] level 2 and 3.”
RANGATAHI

Te Pae Oranga is an effective intervention pathway for rangatahi that prevents escalation through to court

In all the regions we visited in 2023/24, we heard about Te Pae Oranga, a marae-based police initiative supporting rangatahi who have offended. 

In Canterbury, frontline kaimahi described Te Pae Oranga as a good concept that results in “better resolution” but sometimes doesn’t move fast enough and the process is “drawn out”. It was also noted that the threshold for offending for Te Pae Oranga is high. 

In the Upper South region, police leadership told us how Te Pae Oranga iwi community panels can be used as a “back door” non-punitive support for rangatahi. Leadership from the Māori Women’s Welfare League also told us that Te Pae Oranga can help stop offending and provide a pathway other than court. 

An Auckland police leader said that availability of Te Pae Oranga is one enabler to ensuring police kaimahi “don’t try to jump to 10 but start at one and then we’ll work through it” when thinking about the pathway for rangatahi. 

Some whānau Māori were also positive about their experience of Te Pae Oranga, with one person telling us they had advocated for it to be more widely available. 

"Thanks to the support of the Pae Oranga model, iwi liaison officers and other support workers coming alongside him from a Māori lens, [this] has been a huge help for my son whilst going through his plan... This initiative and model is now part of the Oranga Tamariki kete (basket). I couldn’t believe there was nothing available culturally for my son and I was determined to do what I could, which is why I was demanding to get this Pae Oranga model up and running. Now, if someone comes to Oranga Tamariki and asks if there is any cultural supports for their son, they can now say yes, we have a model available.”
WHĀNAUCloseWHĀNAU
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary 

We also heard several accounts from police and other professionals involved in youth justice about a more generalised, holistic approach towards working with rangatahi who have offended.

"With our alternative actions and diversions, we do things like take them for hunting, take them deer stalking, uplift their manaClosemana
Prestige, authority, control, power, influence, status, spiritual power, charismaView the full glossary because we know that when a young person is arrested and they go before the court, that just squashes their mana. They’re worthless to themselves. But we like to boost them up.”
POLICE KAIMAHI 

"We are lucky in the youth justice space. We run a youth court in the community, and this is for Pasifika and Māori. So, for example in our area, we support Manurewa Marae to participate in the court process. Our tikangaClosetikanga
Correct procedure, the customary system of values and practices that have developed over time and are deeply embedded in the social context View the full glossary for Māori whānau is to make them feel supported and connected to their whakapapa, especially those that are disconnected. We listen to their stories to enable us to support them.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI YOUTH JUSTICE SUPERVISOR 

Since 2020, Oranga Tamariki has delegated specific powers and functions to Best Care (Whakapai Hauora) Charitable Trust. Whakapai Hauora is a subsidiary of Tanenuiarangi Manawatū Incorporated, the mandated iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary authority for Rangitāne o Manawatū. The youth justice social worker in this delegated role must be registered under the Social Workers Registration Act 2023 and be approved for appointment by the youth justice manager at Oranga Tamariki in Palmerston North. 

We spoke with the Whakapai Hauora social worker and the Oranga Tamariki youth justice manager to understand how the delegation is working. During our 2023/24 community engagements, we also met several rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary, whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary and kaimahi involved with Rangitāne. This included four rangatahi Māori receiving youth justice supports from Whakapai Hauora and six whānau members.

The delegation from Oranga Tamariki is due to individual effort and a belief in devolving to iwi

We heard that the delegation had been many years in the making, with a youth justice social worker from Oranga Tamariki visiting Rangitāne every week for several years. This arrangement had broken down barriers between whānau and government while also solving practical problems such as the cost and availability of transport for rangatahi and whānau who would otherwise have been required to travel to the Oranga Tamariki site.

Following an increase in offending in the area in 2019, Oranga Tamariki sought to formalise the arrangement through delegation under the Oranga Tamariki Act. We heard this was due to the efforts of a few key individuals at both Oranga Tamariki (at the site) and Rangitāne who believed in devolving statutory services to iwi. We heard they encountered resistance from Oranga Tamariki at national and local levels, with colleagues saying “it couldn’t be done”, but were able to engage with a few key individuals at national office who were willing to take the idea forward for ministerial approval. 

The iwi provides wraparound, holistic supports for rangatahi Māori who have offended

Whakapai Hauora works to prevent rangatahi from reoffending. As well as statutory functions such as FGCs, rangatahi involved in Whakapai Hauora youth justice can participate in a range of initiatives such as ManaCloseMana
Prestige, authority, control, power, influence, status, spiritual power, charismaView the full glossary Wahine (life skills for female rangatahi who have offended), Mana Taiohi (restorative FGC plans) and Whakapai te Waka (where rangatahi work to pay for their reparations). They can also access other wraparound services and supports, some of which are set out in individual FGC plans, including gym visits and community-based clinical support for mental health issues, and alcohol and drug use. 

Other agencies such as the Ministry of Social Development are also on site supporting whānau to access a wide range of services and supports to meet their needs. 

Many of the programmes run by Whakapai Hauora are run in groups, with whānau included, which we heard is more successful than conventional approaches and can lead to better outcomes for the whole whānau. We heard from kaimahi involved in youth justice that Whakapai Hauora is intentional about its work to reduce youth offending and has a strong values-based approach to this.

"Not forgetting what we’re actually here for – to minimise youth offending. We create whānau ora. [We] look at it in a holistic way … The value of whānau is real here.”
WHAKAPAI HAUORA KAIMAHI 

"The answer is to help whānau achieve positive outcomes. All other services that we are doing are geared towards that.”
WHAKAPAI HAUORA KAIMAHI 

In addition to the youth justice social worker, Whakapai Hauora employs a number of other kaimahi to support youth justice. 

Relationships with Oranga Tamariki, NZ Police and other providers make the difference

We heard from both Whakapai Hauora and Oranga Tamariki that an open, respectful and trusting relationship is at the heart of the delegation working well. The two entities share training, and Whakapai Hauora kaimahi can access CYRAS¹⁸⁴ and work at the Oranga Tamariki site if they wish. 

"[Whakapai Hauora kaimahi] started doing youth justice social work from a Māori lens, based here [with Rangitāne] every day. We would like them in the [Oranga Tamariki] office a bit more so that their magic could spread a bit more.”
ORANGA TAMARIKI LEADERSHIP 

We heard that, because relationships were built on trust and respect with regular communication, any issues that arise are quickly addressed. 

We also heard from Whakapai Hauora about its relationships with local police and other providers in supporting rangatahi who have offended. An example of this is that police kaimahi don’t always wear unforms when they attend huiClosehui
Meeting, gatheringView the full glossary on Rangitāne premises (“they do that for us”). 

An example of the delegation working well is that there has never been a non-agreement in a youth justice FGC. This contrasts with what we heard in our other 2023/24 community engagements about FGCs, where agencies often fail to reach agreement and/or find that the agreement is later contested in court. 

There are many signs of success for the rangatahi

Although it can be difficult to measure the impact of different approaches, we heard from Oranga Tamariki that one marker of success for the youth justice delegation is that, for many years, only one rangatahi referred to Whakapai Hauora had been proceeded to a court order.¹⁸⁵ Another is that some rangatahi who have completed youth justice programmes with Whakapai Hauora have returned as mentors. 

Kaimahi at Whakapai Hauora gave us other examples. They told us about a tāne who had been proceeded against as a result of retail crime and is now employed by the company he had stolen from. This transformation is the result of the Whakapai Hauora whakaoranga process, where all parties met to hold the tāne accountable for his offending. We heard that this was made possible by “the aunties” who build and maintain strong community relationships and work in a te ao MāoriClosete ao Māori
The Māori worldView the full glossary way that meets the requirements of the Oranga Tamariki Act and Oranga Tamariki practice standards.

"This is the value of having a team of aunties. We split ourselves to get our work done, to do what is needed.”
WHAKAPAI HAUORA KAIMAHI

While much more difficult to measure, we also heard from several kaimahi about “the glow” that is visible among rangatahi who have completed some of the Whakapai Hauora youth justice programmes. This is similar to what we have heard from other iwi and Māori providers. It raises questions about how improvements in rangatahi self-confidence, self-esteem, mindset and sense of community (including with iwi and hapūClosehapū
Sub-tribeView the full glossary) can be captured in monitoring and evaluation. These things can positively influence offending behaviour but the impacts may not be seen for many years and are in themselves not easy to articulate. 

"It’s about us becoming wāhine. We did lots here.”
RANGATAHI 

What we heard from Whakapai Hauora is that kaupapa Māori approaches to youth offending offer a much more holistic set of services and supports than most government programmes, which are often bound by rigid service specifications. This shows what can be done to better support tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahi Māori and their whānau who have been caught up in the youth justice system. 

"I think stealing is just an idiot move now.”
RANGATAHICloseRANGATAHI
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary 

The Kotahi te Whakaaro approach was created by the South Auckland Social Wellbeing Board to bring together government agencies, NGOsCloseNGOs
Non-government organisationsView the full glossary and Te IwiCloseIwi
TribeView the full glossary o Ngāti Kahu in early 2022. 

Following the early success of Kotahi te Whakaaro, the government provided funding to Oranga Tamariki in late 2022 to establish Fast Track models in Hamilton, Christchurch and Auckland Central. Fast Track refers to the extension and roll-out of the Kotahi te Whakaaro model. The funding also led to the expansion to include rangatahi aged 14–17 in some locations.¹⁸⁶

As at 28 February 2025, there have been 981 referrals to Fast Track for tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary aged 10–13, which involved 497 individuals, and 67 percent have not been referred a second time. There have been 250 referrals to Fast Track for rangatahi aged 14–17, which involved 201 individuals, and 82 percent have not been referred a second time.¹⁸⁷

NZ Police refers all tamariki and rangatahi aged 10–17 suspected or apprehended to Kotahi te Whakaaro. Within 24 hours, a cross-agency team188 reviews each referral and decides which tamariki and rangatahi are best suited to the programme. To do this, the team considers prior offending, whether supports are already in place and the wider needs of the whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary. 

Once tamariki and rangatahi are selected, the cross-agency team aims to understand the individual’s situation – their housing, schooling, health and financial situations and any other challenges. 

The team develops a plan for the tamariki or rangatahi and their whānau within 48 hours. This outlines actions for agencies to take to address the needs of the whānau such as advocating for stable housing, reconnecting tamariki and rangatahi with education, providing mental health support or linking whānau to financial assistance. In some cases, a mentor is assigned as part of the plan. 

Evaluation of the five Fast Track sites, including Kotahi te Whakaaro, shows that overall, the initiatives achieved a reduction in offending and re-referral. A ministerial press release in 2023 reported that 82 percent of tamariki and rangatahi referred to Kotahi te Whakaaro had not reoffended at that time.¹⁸⁹

"The support [from Kotahi te Whakaaro] that has been offered and given has been a lot like with housing needs, education and everything. It’s all in place and I’m really grateful. At the moment, we are in the process of being housed by social housing for a little bit now. This has been helped through Kotahi te Whakaaro. Supporting my son to get him active and take him to the gym in Manukau. My son loves boxing, which they help him with. Mentor picks him up pretty much every day and keeps in contact with him. If there is anything that he needs, and they support me and him for that. I feel that since he has been in Kotahi Te Whakaaro, a lot has changed in a good way.”
WHĀNAUCloseWHĀNAU
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary

One rangatahi highlighted the positive impact of the mentor provided by Kotahi te Whakaaro and how the support was making a difference in their life. 

"[The mentor is] giving me options of sports and different things while taking my mind off the things I used to do. It’s working now as I think stealing is just an idiot move now.”
RANGATAHI 

Professionals working for Kotahi te Whakaaro shared examples of how this approach gets results. 

"We had a whānau with 11 grandchildren. Two kids got into a stolen car. We went to the family and found out that the grandfather was having difficulty enrolling his kids in education. We helped him with this. The grandkid getting into the car helped the grandfather in the end – he said. He got the help he needed.”
KOTAHI TE WHAKAARO PROFESSIONAL (ORANGA TAMARIKI)

"Immediate needs are so important. We focus on hungry kids first. Once we have addressed this, then we can address the other issues. Youth justice plans are focused on the young person and to stop them reoffending. At the end of the day, these kids belong to the whānau.”
KOTAHI TE WHAKAARO PROFESSIONAL (ORANGA TAMARIKI) 

Across our monitoring, we found areas of good practice from police and iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary and community providers working holistically with tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary Māori who have offended. Kaimahi working with these tamariki and rangatahi understand the complex needs of these individuals and that of their whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary. We heard about several strengths in youth justice policing. There are opportunities to build on this by strengthening the ability of Youth Aid kaimahi to support frontline police kaimahi as well as directly support tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau. There is opportunity to work with iwi to provide holistic, culturally responsive and relational services and supports to tamariki and rangatahi Māori and their whānau. 

There are also challenges. It is critical that more is done to address the unmet care and protection needs of the majority of tamariki and rangatahi Māori who offend. As has been shown, they are usually well known to government agencies many years prior to offending, and it should not take criminal activity for the state to intervene and provide effective services and supports. 

Agencies working together when concerns about the safety and wellbeing of tamariki and rangatahi Māori are first raised can improve outcomes and prevent offending from occurring. 

130 Ministry of Justice (2024). Youth justice indicators summary report: December 2024. https://www.justice.govt.nz/assets/ Documents/Publications/Youth-Justice-Indicators-Summary-Report-December-2024_v1.0.pdf
131 https://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/publications/upd-phase-one-research-summary-factsheets.pdf
132 Police data records proceedings taken against people who have offended or are suspected of having offended. A proceeding is essentially a police decision. It can have a wide range of outcomes, including no further action, a warning, a referral to specific services, prosecution and custody admission. We use the term ‘proceeding’ in this report when we refer to NZ Police data.
133 “Over 98% of tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary Maori and 95% of rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary Maori had no police proceedings compared with 99% and 98% for the total population.” See footnote 130 (p. 8).
134 Police data shows that 41 percent (3,454) of tamariki and rangatahi involved in proceedings in 2023/24 were Maori. The proportion of tamariki and rangatahi Maori involved in proceedings has gradually decreased from 44 percent in 2022/23 and from 47 percent in 2021/22.
135 The proportion of proceedings against tamariki and rangatahi Maori has gradually decreased from 54 percent in 2022/23 and from 57 percent in 2021/22.
136 For example, the February 2023 concluding observations from the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child drew attention to the over-representation of Maori in state care and in youth justice.
137 Department of Corrections (2007). Over-representation of Maori in the criminal justice system: An exploratory report (p. 39). https:// www.corrections.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/10715/Over-representation-of-Maori-in-the-criminal-justice-system.pdf
138 New Zealand Police (2022). Te Huringa o Te Tai: A Whanau Ora crime and crash prevention strategy (p. 2). https://www.police.govt. nz/sites/default/files/publications/te-huringa-o-te-tai.pdf
139 Brown, P. (2024). The assessment of factors influencing police prosecution decision-making. New Zealand Police (p. 16). https://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/publications/upd-assessment-factors-influencing-police-prosecution-decision-making.pdf
140 See footnote 130.
141 New Zealand Police (2024). Understanding policing delivery: Executive summary. https://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/ publications/upd-independent-panel-report-one-executive-summary.pdf
142 New Zealand Police (2024). Annual report 2023/24 (p. 54). https://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/publications/annualreport- 2023-2024.pdf
143 See footnote 55.
144 See footnote 130 (p. 8).
145 For example, the Department of Corrections points to several decades of research on early risk factors. See footnote 137 (p. 28).
146 See footnote 61.
147 As outlined in our in-depth review Towards a stronger safety net to prevent abuse of children (see footnote 96), there are some limitations in using reports of concern as a proxy for child welfare concerns due to the way in which Oranga Tamariki records notifications. The true level of concerns raised around child welfare may in fact be higher than recorded reports of concern.
148 “A charge laid against one parent before the child was born was significantly associated with a child’s repeat offending: 68% of those children went on to offend as both a child and a youth, relative to 53% of others who reoffended.” See footnote 61 (p. 7).
149 Tamariki who had been stood down or suspended under the age of 10 were significantly more like to offend across all age groups.
150 Oatley, V. & Gibbs, A. (2020). Improving treatment and outcomes for young people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in the youth justice system: A social work led response and practice. AotearoaCloseAotearoa
New ZealandView the full glossary New Zealand Social Work, 32(2), 5–16. https://doi.org/10.11157/ anzswj-vol32iss2id737
151 Information provided by NZ Police to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
152 Information provided by Oranga Tamariki to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
153 See footnote 96.
154 See footnote 49.
155 Our in-depth review refers to the threshold for intervention being too high and inconsistent across Oranga Tamariki sites (because thresholds are driven by site capacity). Strained social work capacity means that some tamariki are not getting the supports they need at the early intervention stage. See footnote 96.
156 Richardson, S. & McCann, D. (2021). Youth justice pathways: An examination of wellbeing indicators and outcomes for young people involved in youth justice. Oranga Tamariki (p. 2). https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latest-research/Youth-justice-pathways-wellbeing-indicators-and-outcomes-for-young-people-involved-with-youth-justice/Part-1-Youth-justice-pathways-wellbeing-indicators-and-outcomes-for-young-people-with-youth-justice.pdf
157 See footnote 61 (p. 4).
158 NZ Police provided data on proceedings for all tamariki and rangatahi under the age of 18. We note that there are differences in the age of criminal responsibility and appropriate police response for tamariki aged 10–13 and rangatahi aged 14–17. NZ Police publishes aggregated information about proceedings at policedata.nz. This is drawn from the same data analysed here at a more detailed level.
159 Evidenced in our analysis of NZ Police data as well as in the Ministry of Justice’s Youth justice indicators summary report published in December 2024 (see footnote 130). This also follows similar findings in many other reports, including from NZ Police, which shows that Maori (of all ages) were 11 percent more likely to be prosecuted for a particular offence than the general New Zealand population, given all other variables remain constant. See footnote 141 (p. 15).
160 See footnote 130 (p. 8).
161 NZ Police records one ethnicity for each individual despite guidance from Stats NZ that individuals should be able to identify with multiple ethnicities. Information about NZ Police’s approach to ethnicity data collection can be found in Ethnicity data collection by justice sector agencies: Prepared for Te Rau o te Tika – the Justice System Kaupapa Inquiry (WAI 3060) – June 2024.
162 The ethnicity unknown sample size was small and incomparable for this group.
163 See Appendix Three for additional breakdown of method of proceedings.
164 Where the number of individuals in a category is fewer than six, the figure is suppressed in line with Stats NZ guidelines to protect privacy.
165 The sample sizes are small for non-Maori and unknown ethnicity for these intervention types.
166 Where the number of individuals in a category is fewer than six, the figure is suppressed in line with Stats NZ guidelines to protect privacy.
167 See Appendix Three for additional breakdown of method of proceedings.
168 NOI rankings indicate the severity of offending, with a lower NOI ranking indicating a more severe offence. For example, offences with an NOI ranking of 0–20 include homicide, manufacturing illicit drugs and sexual assault. Offences with an NOI ranking of 21–40 include abduction, assault, drug use and robbery. Offences with an NOI ranking of 41–60 include harassment, fraud, property damage and unlawful entry with intent to burgle.
169 Just over half (52 percent) had between two and nine proceeding occasions by the end of the reporting period compared to 46 percent of non-Maori and 25 percent where ethnicity is unknown.
170 In some cases, the difference in proportion was small.
171 NZ Police’s initial involvement is as a result of a report from a third party. Once a report is received, police must respond to it and close it in accordance with the National Recording Standard.
172 Information provided by NZ Police to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
173 Information provided by NZ Police to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
174 Information provided by NZ Police to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
175 Information provided by NZ Police to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024. “One of the key pieces of information to aid Police is the Youth Offending Risk Screening Tool (YORST). YORST provides an indicator of the likelihood that a child or young person will offend. This indication is given as a percentage score based on 14 questions that directly relate to recognised risk factors often associated to offending including offending history, engagement in education, whether peers and/or family are engaged in offending, dependence on drugs or alcohol, care and protection history and family harm history. The scoring is based on two results, static and dynamic risk. The static score cannot be changed and is based on the tamariki and rangatahi historical factors. The dynamic risk can be changed and it is these risk factors that are responded to with the appropriate intervention measures.”
176 For example, Perceived Cumulative Assessment and TEN-R, a decision-making tool that helps assess information directly relevant to the safety of police and others.
177 Blue Light is an NGO providing youth programmes including a supported bail programme, and Blue Reel is a voluntary Police initiative to support rangatahi who offend.
178 WEEP stands for interference with Witness, destruction of Evidence, Ensure appearance in court and Prevention of further offending.
179 Although complainants rarely specify their ethnicity or age, the IPCA told us that it “is almost always a parent or caregiver making the complaint on behalf of the young person”. Information provided by the IPCA to Aroturuki Tamariki, August 2024.
180 Other complaints included care and protection issues (such as uplifts of tamariki) and complaints about rangatahi being questioned. The IPCA also told us that, of the 69 complaints involving tamariki and rangatahi during the reporting period, five required an independent investigation by the IPCA, six resulted in the IPCA overseeing a police investigation and 15 resulted in an agreed resolution by police.
181 The importance of cultural identity is well reported, and studies have shown an association between cultural identity and positive outcomes in health (particularly mental health) and education. For example, the Ministry of Social Development states: “Cultural identity is an important contributor to people’s wellbeing. Identifying with a particular culture helps people feel they belong and gives them a sense of security. An established cultural identity has also been linked with positive outcomes in areas such as health and education. It provides access to social networks, which provide support and shared values and aspirations.” Ministry of Social Development. (2016). The social report 2016: Te purongo oranga tangata (p. 175). https://socialreport.msdClosemsd
Ministry of Social DevelopmentView the full glossary.govt.nz/ documents/2016/msd-the-social-report-2016.pdf
182 Oranga Tamariki Evidence Centre. (2019). Kaupapa Maori approaches in contexts related to youth offending: Environmental scan. Oranga Tamariki. https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latest-research/Kaupapa-Maoriapproaches-in-contexts-related-to-youth-offending/Kaupapa-Maori-approaches-in-contexts-related-to-youth-offending-final.pdf
183 As described below, Oranga Tamariki has delegated specific powers and functions to Best Care (Whakapai Hauora) Charitable Trust. Whakapai Hauora is a subsidiary of Tanenuiarangi Manawatu Incorporated, the mandated iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary authority for Rangitane o Manawatu.
184 CYRAS is the Oranga Tamariki administrative database.
185 This has changed recently with a small number of rangatahi being referred back to Oranga Tamariki following involvement with Whakapai Hauora. Both Oranga Tamariki and Whakapai Hauora put this down to the intent and scope of the delegation, whereby rangatahi requiring a more serious statutory response are overseen by Oranga Tamariki.
186 Fast Track has been extended to rangatahi aged 14–17 in West Auckland, Central Auckland, South Auckland, Hamilton, Rotorua and Christchurch. This is all sites that were funded by the government for expansion. It also continues to operate in Whangarei, Lower Hutt and Dunedin for tamariki aged 10–13.
187 Data provided by Oranga Tamariki in email correspondence, 24 March 2025. Separate information has not been provided for Kotahi te Whakaaro.
188 Government agencies include NZ Police, Oranga Tamariki, Kainga Ora, Health New Zealand and the Ministries of Education and Social Development.
189 https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/government-action-youth-crime-making-difference