47,000 more children in hardship since 2022: a sobering backdrop to New Zealand Children’s Day

Today, communities across Aotearoa New Zealand will celebrate Te Rā o ngā Tamariki - New Zealand Children’s Day. Born from the vision of New Zealand’s first Children’s Commissioner, the late Dr Sir Ian Hassall, this national day remains dedicated to the joy and wellbeing of children across the motu.

While joining in celebrating children on this special day, Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad is reminding us that for many children, the day will include the lived reality of material hardship. Latest data from Stats NZ shows that one in seven New Zealand children (14.3%) live in these difficult circumstances, representing approximately 169,300 children — an increase of 47,500 since 2022.

Dr Achmad describes the lack of progress in reducing child material hardship as both “hugely disappointing” and “unacceptable.” For Māori and Pacific children, rates of material hardship remain disproportionately high, at 25.1% and 31% respectively. For disabled children, the rate is 27%.

"I think we can all agree no child in New Zealand should be going without the basics of life," says Dr Achmad.

"But the fact is that today, as we mark Te Rā o Ngā Tamariki, thousands of children will be going without things like fresh fruit and vegetables, having a good bed to sleep in, or getting to see the doctor. I’m thinking today about the vision that my predecessor Sir Ian had in establishing Te Rā o Ngā Tamariki, focused on the potential and joy that all children should experience in childhood. I’m mindful that while most children will experience a joyful day, for some, poverty means it won’t be.”

"Children can’t wait for our economy to improve, to have the burden of poverty lifted off them. Over half the children living in material hardship live in homes where their parents or caregivers are working, highlighting the immense pressure so many New Zealand families are under, right now.

"Children only get one chance at childhood. We’ve got to act now - I want all New Zealand’s children to thrive, today and every day. All children should be growing up safe and well, flourishing to their full and boundless potential."

Together with her team from Mana Mokopuna, Dr Achmad will spend today meeting children and their whānau at Waitangi Park as part of ‘Play in Pōneke’, a celebration led by Wellington City Council focusing on the importance of play and connection in all children’s lives.

Recognising that the right to play goes hand-in-hand with the right to safety, Dr Achmad will be highlighting the Dear Children nationwide advocacy campaign on children’s safety, which she launched late last year. At the Mana Mokopuna space in Waitangi Park today, children will be invited to share what helps them to feel safe and what they want adults to do to make real their right to safety. Their views and voices will become part of the Dear Children campaign.

Dr Achmad emphasises that while today celebrates the potential of all New Zealand’s mokopuna, to experience that potential, every child must have the basics of life every day of the year.

“The Government must take action now to reduce child material hardship, and we all need to play our part across our communities to keep preventing child harm. These are two ways we can truly celebrate and respect our nation’s children, every day.”

Dr Achmad calls on all people across New Zealand to celebrate the children in their whānau and communities today on Te Rā o Ngā Tamariki, and to carry forward a commitment to children this year by focusing on the issues of children’s safety and child poverty reduction.

Visit manamokopuna.org.nz to access resources on children’s rights, including digital and child friendly versions of the Children’s Rights Convention, and learn how you can help support the wellbeing of all mokopuna.

Visit dearchildren.co.nz to sign your name alongside the Children’s Commissioner as a pledge to mokopuna safety.

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Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad is available for interviews. For media enquiries, please contact:

Jeff Hunkin – Manager Strategic Communications & Engagement - 021 778 403

Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad is the independent advocate for all children under the age of 18 in Aotearoa New Zealand and children and young people under 25 who have been in or who are in care and/or custody. As Children’s Commissioner, Dr Achmad leads the team at Mana Mokopuna – Children’s Commissioner, an independent Crown entity.

About the Dear Children campaign

Launched in late 2025, Dear Children is a foundational commitment from the Children’s Commissioner and the team at Mana Mokopuna to the safety of all of Aotearoa New Zealand’s mokopuna.

The Children’s Commissioner’s letter to children affirms their right to safety and is a commitment that she has invited all adults in New Zealand to sign alongside her, at www.dearchildren.co.nz.

The campaign is focused on raising awareness of the problem of child maltreatment in New Zealand, to lead to a ripple of change for children’s safety. Dear Children sits alongside the Children’s Commissioner’s independent advocacy for systemic change to improve child protection and wellbeing in New Zealand.