The respected policy expert charged with finding solutions to child poverty has challenged men to take responsibility for children's well-being - it's not enough to leave it to the womenfolk.

Newborns and unborn babies in later pregnancy have been dying in South Auckland at a higher rate than the national average for most of the past decade.

A medical leader has hit out at New Zealand's "shameful and intolerable" rate of rheumatic fever, a Third World disease associated with child poverty and overcrowding.

Good policies require good information, not prejudices and ill-informed judgments expressed from the sideline, writes Michael O'Brien.

"Paula Bennett is right when she says poverty isn't an excuse for child abuse," writes Tapu Misa. "There is no excuse for child abuse."

Successive governments have failed utterly to deal with child poverty but now is the perfect time for local Auckland communities to work together, writes Catriona MacLennan.

If child-support payments were made directly to the household, not the state, non-custodial parents would be more likely to meet their responsibilities.

Children in homes with prepaid power meters risk developing bronchial illnesses because many families run out of cash to keep the meters topped up, experts say.

Jonathan Boston exposes three popular 'myths' about the current levels of child poverty in New Zealand, including that it is all the fault of the parents involved.

Most of us hate talking about poverty. Last week the media swooned over a fundraising campaign by Kiwis who tried to live on a couple of bucks a day, now Matt McCarten gives his view.

Good teachers matter, but the problem with conflating education and poverty is that the focus can narrow unhelpfully on one piece of the puzzle, writes Tapu Misa.

More than 1400 New Zealanders attempted to make do with only $2.25 worth of food and drink for each of five days.

A Putaruru school serving up compulsory breakfasts and hot lunches for just $1 a meal says the benefits are showing in students' dental records.

A quarter of primary and intermediate pupils in poorer Waikato areas go to school hungry, researchers have found.

Former MP Sue Bradford and four others will appear in court on Friday after a protest action at the Ministry of Social Development's Auckland regional office today.

Cost should not be only driver of social policies; principles matter, too, writes Tapu Misa.

Phil O'Reilly says attacking the issue of child poverty from many directions, by everyone, has a greater chance of succeeding than simply focusing on benefit payments.

The Herald continues its series looking at our changing National identity. Today, those aged 20 - 39, the children of Rogernomics.