The disabled boy social workers said was being used by his alcoholic mother and her boyfriend has lost access to a vehicle specially modified to meet his needs.

It is a grim glimpse of the front line of social work - an 1100-page dossier of abuse and misery cataloguing the life of Benjamin*.

Severely disabled child used by his alcoholic mother and her boyfriend to access up to $80,000 in benefits.

It is extraordinary that a West Auckland teenager was held in police station cells for four days because CYFs could not find a bed for her, Labour says.

Rangi Tikitiki's is tired of "being a refugee in my own country", he's been on a waiting list for a Housing NZ home since before he began camping at the park.

Every person in the country aged up to 17 has been screened for factors that could later see their life take a turn for the worse - and cost taxpayers.

"These kids just need a chance, it's really hard at 17, they are too old to be in the system but too young to have rights."

Walz Brown works quietly behind the scenes for the youth of Manurewa, always mindful of how a helping hand, a skateboard and his son lifted him from a life of drugs, drink and despair.

Fixing child abuse and neglect is all about building relationships with families in need, social workers say.

We demand action. But equally we should be dispassionate and rational in demanding measures that seek to prevent these things occurring, writes Jarrod Gilbert.

Jacob Lewis found himself on the streets and struggling to afford food. Now he's studying law at prestigious university.

A $25 increase in welfare payments will be cancelled out by new obligations for parents to return to work sooner and for longer hours, advocacy groups say.

I saw a pregnant lady on the bus offer her seat to an elderly lady. Meanwhile, college teenagers were going about their conversations.

Lorde has expressed her support for a lunch delivery program that helps our most vulnerable Kiwi kids.

Welfare rolls have increased for the first time in a June quarter since 2010, confirming other signs of that New Zealand's economic growth is slowing.

A long-term contract to inspect all state houses for potential risks to health and safety was axed the year before two Auckland tenants died last winter.

Geoffrey Pownall had thought his time with the Rotary Club was done.

An Australian model has issued a warning to women about a self-proclaimed fashion designer who allegedly groped, harassed and exploited models.

Just over two years ago, Housing Minister Nick Smith announced that "this year" the Government was developing a housing warrant of fitness, writes Brian Rudman.

You'd be surprised just how hard it is to find a family willing to let a Herald writer snoop around their home and ask all sorts of intrusive questions about their substandard living conditions, writes Peter Calder.

Cold, damp housing is a significant issue facing children, with a paediatrician calling for more to be done to change the culture of accepting unfit houses.

Children are more likely to be in material hardship relative to the rest of the population in New Zealand than in any European country.

A bill aiming to give financial parity between the carers of foster children and children raised by their grandparents was passed in Parliament tonight but it wont take effect until 2018.

One of New Zealand’s most experienced private investigators offers advice on how to deal with stalkers.

The Government recognised in last week's Budget that the gap between market and benefit incomes has become too wide.

A mathematical model designed to predict children at risk of abuse will be trialled with data about children reported to Child, Youth and Family.

The Children's Commissioner wants a rethink of universal services so more public spending can go to the neediest families.

As a young boy, Daryl Brougham thought his name was Daryl Foster. He lived in at least 24 foster homes until the age of 18.

Some regions will "fail" economically and perhaps socially unless we help them to adjust, the Salvation Army says.

Police have asked welfare staff to look into the case of a mother who was allegedly drunk when she dropped her child at school.