Almost one in 10 tamariki and rangatahi are being abused or neglected in state care, a report by the Independent Children’s Monitor has found.
Between July 2023 and June last year, 507 of 5722 children were abused or neglected while in the custody of Oranga Tamariki.
The number of those in state care had decreased but those experiencing abuse had increased from 497 in the previous year and 459 the year before that.
Most of the abuse continued to happen in secure residences, mostly by other young people and when children were returned to their parents’ care while in the custody or Oranga Tamariki.
For those returned home, supports were not always in place for the parents, and social workers were not visiting when they should, the report found.
The fourth report by Aroturuki Tamariki – Independent Children’s Monitor on Experiences of Care in Aotearoa found underlying issues were continuing to go unaddressed.
The report heard from more than 1800 people – tamariki, rangatahi, whānau, caregivers, social workers, and people who work in government agencies, non-government organisations and iwi and Māori organisations.
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