KEY POINTS:
New Zealand's cherished reputation as a "children's paradise" has been shattered by a new Unicef report which ranks the country in the bottom half of developed countries on two-thirds of the measures of children's wellbeing.
Of the 15 indicators for which New Zealand figures are available, it ranks in the top half of the list in only five measures, and in the bottom half in 10.
This forum debate has now closed. Here is a selection of your views on the topic.
Maggie
It is not the country. It is the parents. Selfish, lazy and far too irresponsible to be allowed to have children.
Renata
This is a shock to read although not unexpected. I am bringing my son up in the Netherlands for this reason, and I feel guilty because of my fabulous up bringing in NZ! The great outdoors and a great education system (much better than The Netherlands) but there are too many other influences like crime, drugs and violence that are not good. I saw in the NZ news this week about children not being fed breakfast and the school having to do it. If these children are not getting the basics like breakfast what else is missing?? Shouldnt people be asking these questions instead of feeding them. Everyone seems to talk but what are we going to do about this huge problem. Its going to be very long term if something is not going to be done soon. Something else in the news I saw, a father of a family works for 10 dollars an hour and the mother for 13 dollars. Is that allowed?
Janice Richards
The report has clearly brought out the reality for children growing up in NZ.I have felt that way for a long time,but Kiwis live in denial and put their childrens lives at risks from this denial. Children throughout NZ will be in danger if the culture does not change and all adult Kiwis are responsible for the state of childrens well being. I believe this report can either break it,or make it. I made the right choice by leaving NZ as children are valued and given top priority in this country where I live.
Karen
As a parent of two young children who has recently moved to Australia for one year from NZ., there are many reasons why NZ is a better place to raise my kids and they all revolve around safety and freedom. The safety to be able to walk to school knowing they are less likely to encounter "weirdos" along the way. The freedom to play outside and ride their bikes on the footpaths outside the house, knowing they are less likely to be run over by a speeding car or encounter unsavoury characters. The freedom to be able to visit uncrowded, empty beaches not overshadowed by high rise apartments and surrounded by gawdy shopping malls. The availability in NZ of more healthy and fresh food options and less "supersize me" food options in supermarkets, which are clearly contributing to the obesity epidemic in Australia. The freedom to "spontaneously exercise" during lunchtime at school, because the sun is not so scorching that they are forced to stay under cover.These things might seem insignificant to many readers, but in a childs world, they make a huge difference. New Zealand is not perfect, as the statistics show, but in terms of childhood experiences, I am glad we are coming home!
Jamie C
I am NZ born, and I have lived in Auckland and also in Brisbane Australia, and to be completely honest with you, my feeling is that Auckland is a better place to raise children than Brisbane Australia. I cannot speak for other places in Australia but I can say that the education system is way better in NZ, there is more to do and far more activities to keep children and teenagers occupied. The only downfall is the pay rates in NZ, if something was done about this compared to the cost of living, I think a lot of issues would be dealt with including child poverty. Its time that NZ caught up with wages and realised they are competing with Australia which is practically double the income and the cost of living is cheaper. If it wasnt for the poverty factor, NZ would be my number one choice in raising children.
Jason
NZ offers parallel universes for its kids. On the one hand we have the kids who are offered lots of opportunities, a good education, recreational activities such as sailing and fishing. These kids go on holiday at summer to their family bach where they ride their bikes and swim in the sea. At night they feast on a barbecue dinner and fall asleep (after big cuddles from their parents) on a full stomach to dream of their next day and its fun and exciting activities. These kids are encouraged to do well at school so they can go on to university and ultimately find a career where they can strive for their personal goals and aspirations, this is of course after an overseas experience where they learn and experience other cultures. These kids go on to offer this life style to their own kids. NZ is a great place for these kids, if not a total utopia.
On the flip side however, we have the kids that are born into families who offer them no opportunities at all. These kids are a burden to their parent(s), they are totally neglected and often make headline news due to abuse they suffer, the violent gang lifestyle they choose or when politicians take pity on them and come to visit their slum like environment on their campaign trail. These kids go to bed hungry to dream of being a gangster rapper in the south side of LA and of owning a pit bull terrier, they are awoken by their drunken parents arguments and tootle off to school with no lunch - however on a special days they would have two dollars for a Big Ben pie and a can of Coke. These kids raise themselves and find refuge in pathetic gangs where they try to muster some self respect but deep down inside they are dead. NZ is a small place for these kids and most of them seldomly leave their suburb let alone NZ. NZs South Island is a million miles away for these South Auckland kids, it may as well be Mars. These kids grow up to offer this charming life style to their own kids. NZ is a dump for these kids if not a total hole.
Julz
NZ a bad place to bring up kids? Somehow I dont think so. There are so many good things in NZ that is accounted for. Yes, we do have unfortunately child abuse but really what country doesnt? Ok, so our education system is in need of a overhaul but really what education system doesn't? I am not saying NZ is perfect, but its not a bad place to raise kids either. What makes NZ special is the diversity of cultures, its lifestyle, the people.
Grant Diggle
We should be somewhat sceptical of any report that comes from the UN or its agencies given the history of politically motivated agendas from that source. We dont know the detailed basis of the research so any conclusions must be based on that fact. However if the report is correct, then it points to the total failure of governments over the past three decades to support and encourage the traditional family unit. In fact it stands as a testament to the orchestrated destruction of the traditional family unit. Since the early 1970s there has been a political and civil service agenda to promote alternative family structures and weaken the traditional family. The net result has been fatherless children, welfare dependency, a lack of discipline to ensure socially acceptable behaviour. All in the interests of pandering to a tiny minorities social objectives. We know who these people are They know who they are. Those of us who have raised our children to be good adults are no longer prepared to tolerate the pathetic attempts to blame us for the sins of this group. It is time they were named and shamed and held to account for the misery they have bought on the weakest class in our society. The supreme irony is that these individuals have held themselves up as the protectors of this class all the while seeking to preserve their poor circumstances.
Nancy
NZ is a paradise for children, but that depends on who the parent/caregiver is! I know that my child is in paradise, as I provide for her, I nourish her, I teach her things that a child her age (2) needs to learn/know, I spend time with her, even though I am tired from work, I make the effort to spend time with her, because after all, she never asked to come to this world, she had no choice in the matter, it was solely her father and my decision, that is why I will give my daughter the best that my money can buy, and then you have the Kahui twins, whose lives were made hell and the numerous other beautiful children, that have suffered from the hands of their so called parents/caregivers. But we are a small country compared to Australia who are like 6-8 times our size, so naturally they have more people and their stats wouldnt look as bad as ours would it? But then hey I am just a simple person, with a simple life, what would I know.
Murray
I believe on this subject that New Zealand could improve its position in two ways to make it a better place for kids.
1. Currently the economic climate of high house prices against low average incomes is being passed on to parents who have little room to manoeuvre other than for both parents to get jobs. This leaves the kids in alternate care away from a parent and means that parents return home tired and stressed at the end of the day ,after picking up their kids, when domestic organisation conflicts with the only time they have with the kids. We are supposed to be coming off of a positive economic period which, from middle income NZ, hasn't filtered down to higher parent wealth against outgoings. The government is trying to control the inflation of housing prices, all a bit late, but also the incomes of middle NZ need to increase. An increase in overall net wealth would relieve the need to have both parents working and the stress on parenting this creates.
2. In NZ there is no help or encouragement for procreating adults to become good parents. We have classes to prepare for the physical side of child birth but no classes for prospective parents. We have Plunket and nurse visits for young babies and children but no support classes or visits for parents to promote good parenting methods. NZ children get a good medical start but their safety and personal development is left to random chance. And with the latest Unicef results it looks like due to random chance our average parenting skills are failing our kids. We need support for people to become adequate parents. American, English and New Zealand nanny TV programmes are just not enough. If all of New Zealand, the government as lead, would address and provide improvement in these two areas (described above) improvements in all areas of child well being would be seen and NZ will become a better place for kids.
David Strong
Any abuse of a child is shocking. Some perspective is useful, as shown in an extract from www.youthforyouth.org in the USA. There are over 3 million reports of child abuse annually in USA. It is estimated that 9 million children are abused annually. Almost 1.8 million children are abducted from their homes annually. Child abuse kills more than 3 children every day in the USA. And New Zealand came bottom of the list?
Julie Smith
It was with interst i read your report of children in New Zealand and UNICEF's opinion that NZ was not a great country in which to be a child. This comes on the heels of the latest media interest in the number of Maori children (boys in particular) who are leaving school with no qualifications. I get angry when I hear statistics like this, and hear that the Government is again throwing good money after bad in trying to provide a better education for a particular sector of society. These children have the same rights and opportunities to learn as everyone else who attends school. What most of them dont have is a safe, supportive home, food on the table, and parents who care enough to spend time with them without bashing them, being drunk, high or both.
Instead of spending more money trying to put a bandaid over the wound and letter the fester continue beneath, more money should be spent in protecting these children, and offering them an alternative such as free boarding schools with all food and clothing provided, limited access for parents who cannot or will not change their ways. It is a waste of time and resources, taking children off abusive parents and then placing them with extended Whanau who often exhibit the same type of behaviour, or grandparents who more often than not taught the cycle of abuse to the abusive parents in the first place, and go on to perpetuate the problems. I am very aware of cultural and whanau issues, however, surely the safety and needs of the children concerned must come before all else. It should be about what the children need, not what their parents or family want.
I have 4 children who have a fabulous life. They also enjoy the basic things that children should be able to take for granted, such as food, health, love and happiness, and a roof over their heads. Given the generosity of our welfare state, no child should ever have to go without in this country. It is a reflection of poor parenting, not a poor country that leads to our appalling statistics. Despite this, i believe that NZ is a great place in which to bring up your children, if you make the most of your opportunities, and work hard without expecting the Government to provide the answers.
Jenny
Good & bad points for raising children here. Fantastic sport & outdoor facilities. Some great teachers (vocational not in it for the money) but it all comes back to the parenting & what we perceive and accept as society standards. Having lived in a big city and now moved to a small rural area what a huge difference in the family, community & therefore children's attitudes. More caring, more application, more input, more concern. Sorry to say but I saw it with my own eyes - single parents more interested in getting to the pokies at 9 in the morning than sorting their kids out for school, drunk at 3 in the afternoon so unable to collect or see to their kids after school & they have 4 & 5 kids?? We are a family unit where we both work to make ends meet but I tell you what, my kids are well cared for and nurtured, getting educated, are well mannered, play heaps of sport & would appear I hope,to be what used to be known as your average KIwi Kid. Suggest that government policies regarding benefit incomes( maybe just food vouchers thereby eliminating wastage on pokies, cigarettes & alcohol), pokies & non-tolerance by justice system of drugs might be just a minute step in the right direction. If we lifted what are perceived to be standard family values of old may be we would get somewhere! And guess what, I do drink when money allows, yes I have been divorced and I don't make excuses - just live in the real world!
Shoba
Blame it on the Government and CYPS! Ashley with your comment posted, good on ya mate! We are a 3 child family and working, so hard to save for deposit for houses when you got rent, food, bills plus other expenses, no wonder we havent moved on. Looks like Oz is the way to go! Our kids suffer, everything is so expensive here. They tell us to eat healthy and stay fit. Helen Clark try living of our budget!! When you discipline your child, CYPS pull you to the side and threaten you (ask me I should know). Yet what they are meant to follow up on they dont. NZ is clean, green, expensive and run by idiots who cant even solve their own issues!
D Justice
New Zealand is in the process of creating a predominantly male underclass. There is no positive discrimination. A vehicle NZ society has used in virtually every social system there is for the past 40 years. Dont like what I am saying? Take an unbiased look at your recent and emerging social statistics. The bulk of NZs social engineering has been almost exclusively focused on changing the lives of girls and women. If you disagree, then look back over the social policy making from the mid 70s to the present. There is no political component to boys education, while there certianly is for girls. I asked a senior labour politician once, if a survey were done of children from primary, through intermediate to secondary school, to determine how they perceived their roles in society as adults, whether they would have children, how they felt about what their rights as parents would be like etc, how different the results might be? Yeah, I was wasting my breath.
Your society has a negative attitude toward its boys and men. Like mens health, boys education is a non-issue. How good can NZ be for children if it shows so little interest in half of them ever reaching their potential over a much wider range of social participation? What was the point of teaching a generation of boys to accept second best or nothing at all. Take a look back over the printed and television media garbage of the last few decades, then look at the statistics by race and gender.
Look at the problems you're dealing with now. If your approach to social change had been far more inclusive, if "all boats had risen" as Clark likes to say, would the current situation be better or worse?
Looks like you are about to start a multi-million dollar anti violence campaign, if its more of the same, things in your fractured little society will probably get much worse. Remember, before you embark on this political crusade, that whatever punishing, negative propaganda you inflict on men you push on to boys too. Try not to lose sight of that when you're choosing your scapegoats. Few things about a society are discrete, and you wll find strong relationships among factors that seem to be unrelated. If you are genuinely concerned about NZs international status regarding children, then you have got some big structural changes to make.
Carl Forster
An PR media lead government for the last 3 terms.They have released a number of Workshops/Reports to fix a growing number of problems and what happens. 1) if the dont like the results then it simply disappears
2) The have these panels to find out what is wrong but never complete the exercise. It is given half hearted support and limited funds. 3) They are all talk and PR. No Substance. Labour must go now.
John Robb
Anyone who really believes NZ is a bad place to bring up kids has not spent much time travelling overseas. Despite a woeful record of child deaths here from a variety of causes including parental beatings, NZ still remains a very benign environment to raise children. Of course we can do better, but we should not be swayed by statistics which as we all know can be skewed to mean anything by politicians looking for votes and headlines and NGOs looking to boost their funding.
Andrew Atkin
NZ would be a great place for kids to grow up in if the government just left them alone. This means funding families directly instead of schools so parents can bring up their kids the way that they think is best. Highly independent home schooled kids in America, for example, consistently achieve significantly higher academic achievement and at virtually no cost. They also generally socialise well too (their are many opportunities for homse schooled to do this - the idea that they miss out here is a myth). Imagine giving the $6000 per year per child from institutional schooling back to families so that their kids can learn better and grow up where they are happy. It would solve so many problems.
Chris Brazendale
Somewhere along the line in the last 20 years single income families became economically unviable. To my mind this made a huge difference to the quality of family life. I blame the governments of this period - they spend their time waffling on about non-issues like homosexual law reform and rights for prostitutes. They dont give a damn about working class families.
Maria
I believe, and I might be wrong, that many NZ schools do not provide lunch rooms for the children, or cheap, hot meals. I work in schools, and was shocked to discover the kids have to sit on the ground, in the stairwells, or for the lucky ones, the few outdoor benches or a classroom to eat their lunch. How can a child enjoy a nutritious meal in this way?
Ashley
New Zealand should take a leaf from Australias book and think about the people. I know we make comments about Aussies but lets look at some points of interest. Firstly Biofuels, 5 per cent and 10 per cent Ethanol blends are being used at the moment and it works on all vehicles post 1990.Japanese imports are designed for 100 octane fuel and Australia has 95 octane-10 per cent Ethanol blend fuel. Secondly, medical expenses. Australia use a medicare card which is incorp in your tax. Doctors bulk bill to medicare. New Zealand should reintroduce compulsory superannuation and use Australias idea of the First Home Owners Grant to assist people in their dream of owning their own home. This grant is approx $7000-00 at the moment and helps for deposit and legals. I know this as we moved to Australia in 2000 with a mere $120-00 in my back pocket and a backpack of clothes. Today I am about to buy my third home, another new car for my wife and trip with our children. I am sure that this would be achievable back home in New Zealand if PM Helen Clark came over and paid me a visit. I could show her the real facts not the garbage she sees on paper. Has New Zealand wondered why so many Kiwis move to Australia? Freedom Air conducted a survey and found the largest population of Kiwis are here in Brisbane (Logan City) and were even nice enough to bring a bit of kiwi to us in the form of Kiwi Movies In The Park..Whale Rider,Footrot Flats etc. Talk to me Helen Clark and I will guide you in helping New Zealand become the Beautiful place again as it once was.
Daniel
There are so many problems it is hard to know where to begin. I am terrified of sending my kids to school because of all that they will be exposed to - bullying, the NCEA, overcrowding, a focus on attaining the ever decreasing "average" rather than on excelling, a never truly addressed or countered "tall poppy syndrome" as prevalent as it ever was. There is now plenty of evidence to support the idea that some of the prime indicators of societal problems are single parent and broken families and that the best environment for children is in a married, unbroken, biological family unit with both Mum and Dad. Yet there is no-where near enough being done to encourage or support the family unit - no wonder our stats are so low on measures for families. I notice that the developed nations that are at the bottom of this are all countries with high and ever increasing rates of divorce and single parent families. Make divorce harder and re- ignite some respect for the biological family unit (statistically the absolutely safest place for kids to be - followed only by adoptive mum and dad family situations - adoptive not fostered or state career situations) and some change in attitudes will emerge - slowly, yes, but it will happen. There can never be any quick fixes to these things. Ultimately: no NZ is not a good place for kids. Pretty, yes, with all the outdoorsy things that can be done. But these things are not being done by increasingly large numbers of kids and there is more than that the childhood anyway. Societally NZ is a dreadful place to raise kids. I and my wife have been seriously considering moving to another country.
Fanny
Thanks Plunket, CYPS, Police, Family Courts, ,and anyone else that continually refuse to help when women ask for protection for their children. Last night my 17 year old son was yelling at me demanding me to justify my existence as a single mother; and why I didnt just put up with it when my parents still try and hit me or when his father had been horrifically abusive to me and his siblings. This is the message young folk are getting from the very authorities put in place supposedly to protect them from abuse and harm. That women and children should shut up and put up with it.
Ian
The report is right to criticise NZ. On a daily basis I see vehicles with expensive mag wheels and the duff duff subwoofer blaring - all expensive extras - yet the children inside the vehicle are unrestrained and exposed to tobacco smoke. The levels of domestic violence, which appear to be culturally acceptable, reinforce unacceptable behaviours which in turn maintain the levels of abuse seen within society. Likewise what other developed country is reliant on a charitable organisation for ensuring the health of infants (Plunket). Todays children are our future nurses, doctors, teachers, lawyers, etc. If we continue to fail children by not providing adequate expertise to support parents, eg. properly educated children's nurses actively involved in communities, we are putting our own futures in jeopardy.
Suzanne Keir
Dear New Zealand,
What a day! Here I am sitting in Kent, UK watching their news about how the UK is the worst place in Europe to have children. Having taught in London for nearly two years and having changed to a young offenders unit 5 months ago, I know well the woes of this country and my opinion of the average current UK childhood does not rank high in my estimation. I have smugly sat through today while my colleagues lament the loss of the almightly UK, knowing that I get to return to my pocket of Pacific Paradise, after I have seen enough of Europe to be described as well-travelled and broadminded. But alas! I decided to investigate the UNICEF report only to discover that my corner of Paradise is not so idyllic or as perfect as my rose tinted glasses suggest it is. In fact, we appear to languish behind the UK and this scares me greatly. I have witnessed first hand the effects of class A drugs on young minds, the impact of completely useless, unmotivated, feeble parents and a state system that would rather chop off its right arm than ban alcohol consumption on public transport and streets, thus encouraging gangs of yobs in hoodies ro rampage drunkenly. I have watched too many children reject their own educations purely becuase everything (including the pencil) is provided and therefore, their need to have any responsibility for their actions is not required. I have met the parents who see nothing wrong with their children coming home on school nights completely intoxicated and therefore, unable to complete their homework or sit through the lesson the following day. Sadly, it looks like I have all this to look forward to if I go home and to be honest, I'm tired of this complete lack of dignified humanity.
I write as a plea to both my fellow country men and women as well as the lack lustre government that remains in power. Sort it out and fix these problems. Do not throw money at it as it wont just go away. Do not allow the numerous members of NZs political correct army to be too busy theorising about 'a happy society' that they allow greater hardship to occur. I am proud to be a New Zealander. I sang the national anthem in Westminster Square in front of Big Ben to celebrate Waitangi Day with pride. I have seen the beaches of Gallipoli, but I doubt I will return to a country that resembles a more worrisome Pacific Form of England because there are better places to be.
Catherine
I have travelled quite a bit and I think New Zealand is great place to bring up children and be a child for most children. However I have lived in the Netherlands which ranked 1st in the survey and I would say they are definatly doing it better. It is an awesome place to bring up kids there. The government has a lot better funding in place there for childrens needs, housing, health care etc. There is restrictions on things that can be bad for family life such as long workings hours, and the government has strict controls on the rental market meaning families are not at the mercy of property investors like here, plus they gets heaps of holiday time every year.
