Child poverty statistics released today by Statistics NZ show a statistically significant increase in children living in poverty since 2022 for two out of the three primary child poverty measures. More children are living in material hardship and in income poverty, using the after-housing costs measure, compared to 2022. Evidence suggests childhood poverty can have broad ranging impacts including on cognitive development, school achievement and adult employment, leading to a cycle of inequality that may span generations.
“Today’s child poverty release shows the number of children living in poverty has increased since 2022. This data confirms what we are hearing from our members about the impacts of financial pressures on households. The Salvation Army’s recently released State of the Nation report highlights that 90,000 food parcels were distributed by the Salvation Army alone in 2025, a 7% increase on 2024.” says New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services (NZCCSS) Chief Executive Alicia Sudden.
“As predicted, the attempts made within Budget 2025 to alleviate child poverty have not gone far enough. There are still 169,300 children living in material hardship who are not having their basic needs met. This is almost 50,000 more children than 2022. The rates of hardship are even higher for Māori, Pacific and disabled children, with one in four for Tamariki Māori and disabled children, and one in three for Pacific children.”
There has been some positive progress, with statistically significant reductions in before-housing cost and after-housing cost income measures for children since 2018, however reductions in child poverty have stalled, or been undone, since 2022.
“Greater investment in raising incomes and addressing the drivers of poverty will be needed if we are to see the aspirations of the Child Poverty Reduction Act realised, and the wellbeing of our nation’s children upheld. We call on the Government to prioritise poverty reduction in Budget 2026,” says Alicia.
NZCCSS is advocating for a broad approach to poverty reduction, calling on all political parties to make a long-term commitment to freeing New Zealanders from poverty with the introduction of a Poverty Reduction Act. This would include introducing legislation to measure poverty rates and set poverty reduction targets for all New Zealanders, while retaining the ability to measure and set targets for child poverty.
“Our members work with people across the lifespan and see the daily impacts of poverty on people of all ages. We are calling on political leaders to show justice and compassion to all, committing to policies that will lead to real change that frees New Zealanders from poverty”.
“Hardship and poverty are not inevitable. We can make choices to ensure a future where no child or adult goes hungry,” says Alicia.
In addition to the introduction of a Poverty Reduction Act, NZCCSS’ proposed Free from Poverty policies focus on income sufficiency, greater recognition of disability within welfare systems, reducing financial barriers to work, improving the Working for Families scheme, addressing rising food costs and improving housing access and affordability.
“Increasing incomes and reducing hardship for parents through Working for Families could not only reduce child poverty but have very real long-term impacts on the wellbeing of children and the broader productivity of New Zealand. While there was an increase in the abatement threshold for Working for Families in Budget 2025, it came with the removal of the universal Best Start payment during the first year of a child’s life. NZCCSS is calling on Government to increase Working for Families payments and index entitlements to align with wage growth or CPI, while also reducing complexity within the scheme.”
ENDS
For more information on NZCCSS’ Free From Poverty Election 2026 policy asks:
https://nzccss.org.nz/resource/free-from-poverty-election-2026/
