August 27, 2015
Culture transformational for children in care
The Children’s Commissioner says a lot more needs to be done to look after the needs of tamariki Maori in the care of Child, Youth and Family.
In his first State of Care Report on the service, Russell Wills found inconsistencies in the care and services provided to children.
He also found a lack of accessible information about how well children are doing while in care and their outcomes once they have left the system.
Dr Wills says while Maori make up 35 percent of the country’s children and young people, 58 percent of those in CYFS care and 68 percent of those in residential care are Maori.
"When their social work helps them to maintain contact with their whanau, to know their whakapapa, to be involved in kapa haka, to learn te reo, to visit marae, to work with iwi, these young people describe transformational outcomes. They are healed, they do well. The problem was, we didn't see that nearly often enough," he says.
Dr Wills says iwi and other government agencies need to be far more engaged with Child Youth and Family about assisting children in care.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH DR RUSSELL WILLS CLICK ON THE LINK
https://secure.zeald.com/uma/play_podcast?podlink=MzE4NTg=
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