Part One: Needs assessments and plans for tamariki and rangatahi in care

Part One of the NCS RegulationsCloseNCS Regulations
(National Care Standards and Related Matters) Regulations 2018 View the full glossary requires needs assessments and plans to be developed for tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary when they are in the care and custody of the State or an approved iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary or cultural social service or child and family support service, and for social workers to regularly visit them.

Oranga Tamariki assesses itself as compliant with the NCS Regulations on assessing needs and planning most of the time. However, the measure used by Oranga Tamariki does not provide an accurate reflection of its compliance. This is because:

• Oranga Tamariki is not measuring itself against the standard required in the NCS Regulations. The NCS Regulations require plans to be reviewed at least every six months, and the needs assessment reviewed accordingly, rather than the 12-month measure that Oranga Tamariki uses.
• The regulations also require certain information to be included in needs assessments and plans. Through our monitoring, we heard that assessments and plans are not always complete, and do not always accurately reflect the needs of Tamariki and rangatahi.

Oranga Tamariki is also not following its own policies. Oranga Tamariki requires social workers to use its Tuituia assessment and All About Me Plan, however, Oranga Tamariki measures its compliance by whether any assessment or plan is in place. Oranga Tamariki data indicates that only 42 percent of tamariki and rangatahi have a current Tuituia assessment and 41 percent have a current All About Me Plan, based on the 12-month standard.

The NCS Regulations require that the views of tamariki, rangatahi and whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary are reflected in needs assessments and plans, and that tamariki and rangatahi, their whānau and their caregivers receive a copy of the plan. Again, Oranga Tamariki self-monitoring shows a high level of compliance. However, what we heard from most tamariki and rangatahi was that they do not feel listened to in the planning process, and nor do their whānau. Most of the tamariki and rangatahi we spoke with about plans were aware they had a plan, but some tamariki and rangatahi did not have a copy of their plan or did not know what was in it.

Social worker visits are a way of seeing whether plans are achieving their intent and whether tamariki and rangatahi needs are being met. Oranga Tamariki data shows compliance with the NCS Regulations for social work visits has not changed significantly over the last three years, with two thirds of tamariki and rangatahi visited regularly. This is despite repeated commitments that improving performance is a priority.

Completing thorough needs assessments and plans and having positive relationships with tamariki and rangatahi are central to the social work role. Oranga Tamariki must find a way to prioritise this critical work.

In completing assessments and plans, Oranga Tamariki is not following its own policies

The lead indicators Oranga Tamariki uses to assess its compliance with Part One look only at whether there is evidence of any needs assessment or plan in place. These measures do not provide an accurate reflection of compliance.

Oranga Tamariki also looks at whether needs assessments and plans have been updated in the last 12 months. However, the NCS RegulationsCloseNCS Regulations
(National Care Standards and Related Matters) Regulations 2018 View the full glossary require plans to be reviewed at least every six months, and for needs to be reassessed with each review of the plan. Oranga Tamariki data shows, some needs assessments and plans have been updated in the last six months, but because Oranga Tamariki uses a 12-month measure instead, it is unclear how compliant it is with the NCS Regulations.

The lead indicators do not always measure compliance with Oranga Tamariki policy, or what is in the best interests of tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary. The lead indicators from Oranga Tamariki imply high compliance, with almost all tamariki and rangatahi having some form of recent needs assessment “that sufficiently assessed both the immediate and long-term needs of tamariki at the time the case was reviewed”.

Oranga Tamariki lead indicator 1 and 2

Tamariki have a current assessment of both their immediate and long-term needs

72%2021/2022 91% 2022/2023 90% 2023/2024

Tamariki have a current plan that contains actions to address those needs, when those actions will be taken, and by whom

79%2021/2022 87% 2022/2023 86% 2023/2024

Oranga Tamariki data

Tuituia assessment created or updated

46%2021/2022 43% 2022/2023 42% 2023/2024

All About Me plan created or updated

53%2021/2022 46% 2022/2023 41% 2023/2024

A closer look shows that 42 percent of tamariki and rangatahi had an approved Tuituia assessment in the last 12 months, although Oranga Tamariki policy requires a Tuituia assessment for all tamariki and rangatahi in care¹. Other assessments captured in the Oranga Tamariki lead indicator include Gateway assessments as well as court ordered assessments such as medical, psychiatric, or psychological reports ordered under section 178 of the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989.

While the NCS Regulations do not require a specific type of needs assessment, Tuituia is a comprehensive assessment that covers all tamariki and rangatahi needs. By comparison, assessments such as Gateway and section 178 reports are specific to health and education and should be used to inform the Tuituia. If assessments are not holistic, they cannot be relied upon when determining compliance as the NCS Regulations require assessments to cover a range of matters², not just health and education needs.

Similarly, although the Oranga Tamariki lead indicator data shows that 86 percent of tamariki and rangatahi had a current plan with actions to address their needs, fewer than half of these (41 percent) had an All About Me Plan³ created or updated in the last twelve months. We heard the most common type of plan, other than an All About Me Plan, is a court plan⁴.

All About Me Plans incorporate key information in one place, setting out information about tamariki and rangatahi, and who is responsible for which actions in the plan. Unlike court plans, the All About Me Plan has been designed in a way that is helpful for sharing with tamariki and rangatahi, whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary and caregivers. Oranga Tamariki notes that “significant work is underway to develop a new digital All About Me Plan, which will support social workers to ensure these plans can be actively used on an ongoing basis to support meeting the needs of Tamariki in care”⁵.

Tamariki and rangatahi and whānau voices are not always reflected in plans

The NCS Regulations require needs assessments and plans to take into account the views of tamariki and rangatahi and their whānau. Despite the Oranga Tamariki lead indicators showing a high level of compliance this was not reflected in what we heard from tamariki, rangatahi and their whānau.

Oranga Tamariki lead indicator 19

Tamariki views have been identified and considered

85%2021/2022 86% 2022/2023 84% 2023/2024

Most of the Tamariki and rangatahi we spoke with about plans were aware they had a plan. However, some tamariki and rangatahi did not have a copy of their plan or did not know what was in their plan. A few tamariki and rangatahi said this was because they did not see or hear from their social worker, or their social worker had not spoken to them about their plan. Sometimes they thought this was because their social worker had changed.

“I have a plan and they asked if I agreed with it and I do … It’s a two-month plan. I have to do 10 community service hours a week … and I think they are sorting out a programme for me.” CHILD

“I think I’ll be here [group home] till I’m 15 years old. Don’t have any plan, no one has spoken to me about my plan.” CHILD

“Oranga Tamariki – they are freaking shit. Because they haven’t stuck to anything in the plan to help me get back home. I’ve had 20 odd different social workers, leaving, not doing anything. When I was in [region] I had four of them.” CHILD

When listened to, tamariki and rangatahi play a pivotal role in ensuring plans meet their needs, as well as their wishes and aspirations. However, most tamariki and rangatahi who spoke to us about needs assessments and planning told us they did not feel involved in or listened to in the development of their plan, and many of them felt that decisions were made without them, and that goals or views had been pushed onto them. This included decisions about health and education needs, placement decisions, recreation and sport, and frequency of contact with whānau.

“Oranga Tamariki didn’t let me participate, they didn’t ask me what I wanted to do. My social worker just decided whatever. My social worker shared something so personal without asking me.” RANGATAHI

“I am clueless about the plan. I want to go to the gym, and I want to go to boxing. I have a lot of plans, but they are not listening to my ideas.” RANGATAHI

Fewer Tamariki spoke positively about their plans, but those who did told us they felt included, listened to and informed by their social workers and other professionals. A couple of tamariki said their social worker explained why some things couldn’t happen as part of their plan, such as seeing parents or whānau members, due to court orders.

“They [social worker] ask me things about my feelings on different things, about being here [placement] and what I want to do … I have had a say in what I want. It has been perfectly fine. They have heard what I have said and have made things happen … They asked me ‘do you need something?’, asked me a question and I am getting a say. Instead of just doing something for me, in my opinion they ask me before anything happens.” RANGATAHI

Although Oranga Tamariki has not carried out its recurring Te Tohu o te Ora child survey since 2022, results from that year showed that the majority of tamariki and rangatahi (80 percent) indicated they get to have a say in important decisions about their life. Three in 10 tamariki and rangatahi said this was “all of the time”, half said, “most of the time” and about two in 10 said “not much of the time” or “never”. Oranga Tamariki reported there were no significant differences by age, gender or ethnicity⁶. Given the mixed experiences we heard from tamariki and rangatahi in our engagements, we look forward to Oranga Tamariki carrying out this survey again⁷.

Oranga Tamariki lead indicator 8

Family/whānau views have been identified and considered

81%2021/2022 84% 2022/2023 80% 2023/2024

Including the voices and views of whānau in planning for their tamariki and rangatahi is necessary to understand what whānau think their tamariki and rangatahi need, as well as what might be needed for tamariki and rangatahi to be able to safely return home. It is also important for getting whānau buy-in to the plan, and subsequent support from the whānau to meet goals in the plan. Like their tamariki and rangatahi, whānau also have wishes and aspirations that are relevant. We heard mixed experiences from whānau about their involvement.

A couple of whānau spoke with us about being supported by Oranga Tamariki to attend a family group conference (FGC). One whānau told us they had been given petrol vouchers to get to the FGC, while the other told us wider whānau had been flown in to support them at the FGC. A couple of whānau told us they felt supported to share their voice and be involved in the FGC. Kaimahi from Oranga Tamariki told us that meeting with whānau in advance of the FGC and building relationships to create a safe space where whānau understand what is going on, is important for achieving good outcomes.

However, some whānau told us they did not feel listened to in the development of plans and in FGCs.

“I went to a family group conference and they already decided [rangatahi] was going to residence. I could have a say in plans when [rangatahi is] out.” WHĀNAUCloseWHĀNAU
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary

“I got told three days before the FGC and was asked if I wanted to be part of it by phone or video.” WHĀNAU

Needs assessments and plans are sometimes missing information and have gaps

Some professionals from NGOsCloseNGOs
Non-government organisationsView the full glossary, iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary/Māori social services, residences and group homes told us the plans they receive from Oranga Tamariki often have gaps or lack information they need to support the tamariki and rangatahi in their care. They told us when key information is not included in plans, they either need to “hassle” Oranga Tamariki to get the information or create the plan themselves. The time they take doing this means they cannot do other work required of them.

Some social workers told us high caseloads means they aren’t available for tamariki and rangatahi as often as they would like and as a result are unable to update assessments and plans in the required timeframes. A couple of Oranga Tamariki kaimahi told us when other professionals, such as Allied Support Workers,⁸ are available to help them with other work, it means they can focus on assessments. They also told us that having good relationships, and working with other social workers, supports better quality plans.

“You’re just asking them interview questions really and that’s what you put in their plan [for tamariki and rangatahi]. There’s barely any time to visit them let alone hang out with them. You’re asked by professionals about things, but I have no idea, as I could only spend 10 minutes with them [tamariki or rangatahi].” ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI

Insufficient funding and long waitlists mean some Tamariki and rangatahi aren’t getting the assessments and services they need

Some Oranga Tamariki kaimahi told us that funding is a barrier. They said there was insufficient funding within Oranga Tamariki to pay for assessments and for the services to go into plans.

“They [upper management] don’t want to fund the level of funding these children need. They want us to change the risk assessment. So, we have to balance doing a risk assessment for this child but be mindful of funding. Actually, this is not my job to manage the funding, it’s my job to manage the risk for these children. We are lucky more doesn’t go wrong.” ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI

Some Oranga Tamariki kaimahi also told us that long waitlists hinder the timely completion of assessments and plans, as well as access to subsequent supports.

“We’ve only got one agency that completes assessments, taking six months. We got a kid sitting with horrendous sexual offending, but we can’t put any supports in place for six months cause that’s how long it takes to write an assessment because they’re so short staffed …” ORANGA TAMARIKI YOUTH JUSTICE KAIMAHI

We heard that it was not uncommon for tamariki and rangatahi to wait for three to six months for specialist assessments, including Gateway assessments. This corresponds with the findings from the Oranga Tamariki review of the Gateway process, which found that most Gateway assessments take up to six months to complete⁹.

Completion means that a medical appointment, Interagency Service Agreement (ISA), and the final Gateway report have been completed, however, this does not necessarily mean tamariki and rangatahi have received the services recommended in the plan¹⁰.

“Wait times for specialist health appointments average six months. Often, by the time a child gets a specialist appointment, they have moved to a new location or care placement, are no longer in care, or the FGC intervention has been completed or closed. This makes follow-up more complex, as it appears no one is accountable if Oranga Tamariki are no longer involved, and some are forced to restart the waiting process due to a lack of coordination regarding medical appointments. It’s hit and miss because of the waitlist to get into other agency’s referral to secondary services. Once the Gateway actions have been identified and services recommended, there can be significant delays and lack of services to refer the tamariki on to. The waitlist to gain access to specialist care can be between two and three months currently.” NGO KAIMAHI¹¹

Some caregivers we spoke with mentioned that actions in Gateway assessments for tamariki and rangatahi in their care had not been actioned: “Another thing about the Oranga Tamariki social worker, at the Gateway assessment, everyone was there and made recommendations. She ignored what the professionals said and did not convey any of it to [tamariki mum] and even us. The Oranga Tamariki social worker before the current one was even worse.” NON-WHĀNAU CAREGIVER

“There were reports [from the outcome of the Gateway assessment] that said they needed referrals within two weeks, and nothing happened. Three hours all up, for two children. On that report, referrals were to be made in two weeks. This didn’t happen.” NON-WHĀNAU CAREGIVER

Some health professionals involved with Gateway assessments told us the referrals they receive from Oranga Tamariki are often missing crucial information and that this can cause delays to referrals being actioned.

“I can tell you that the quality of the referrals [from Oranga Tamariki] need to improve. I know that Oranga Tamariki workloads are high, but the stuff they send indicates that they are in tick-box mode. They send what they think they should send [information] but often we need quite a bit more from them.” HEALTH KAIMAHI

We heard that sometimes, even when a service is identified as needed, Oranga Tamariki kaimahi cannot put it into plans because it is not available. For instance, we heard from a few Oranga Tamariki kaimahi that they need to forgo some recommendations based on which services are available in their area.

“When five different therapies are recommended but most are not available within our rural community. Means I have to choose the one that is available and ignore the rest of the recommendations.” ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI

The Ministries of Education and Health and Oranga Tamariki told us they are currently working on redesign options for Gateway. We will look at the impacts of any changes to Gateway in our future reports.

Oranga Tamariki has limited visibility of self-harm and suicide risk

An in-depth assessment by Oranga Tamariki states that tamariki and rangatahi involved with Oranga Tamariki “often have high mental health and wellbeing support needs, including depression and suicidal ideation, anxiety, mood disorders and substance use, as well as a range of other (undiagnosable) manifestations of mental distress”12. Data shows that these tamariki and rangatahi are more likely to be hospitalised because of self-harm.

The high mental health and wellbeing needs of many of these tamariki and rangatahi may be due to a range of interactive factors such as trauma (individual, whānau, or intergenerational), a family history of mental health, and attachment issues. Involvement with Oranga Tamariki can add to trauma and distress for some tamariki and rangatahi¹³. This is why assessment of risk is critical.

15 – 17-year-olds with a self-harm hospitalisation in 2022

No Contact with Oranga Tamariki14	0.4%
Intervention from Oranga Tamariki	4.9%
Care or Custody of Oranga Tamariki	4.4%

Oranga Tamariki confirmed that there were four suspected suicides of tamariki or rangatahi in care in 2023/24.

Oranga Tamariki told us that it has three screens it uses to assess psychological health and substance abuse as follows: the Substances and Choices Scale (SACS) which assesses and monitors the use and impact of alcohol and drugs, the Kessler Screen, which gives an indication of psychological distress and possible mental health issues, and a Suicide Screen to help identify if tamariki and rangatahi have active thoughts of suicide. Together the three screens are known as SKS. Oranga Tamariki requires these screens to be used to inform assessments, along with other information, when:¹⁵

• mental health, suicide, and/or substance use are potential concerns
• significant events, trauma, behaviours and/or risk factors are present
• tamariki and rangatahi are held in Police custody
• tamariki and rangatahi enter a residence, and at any time during the residential stay when mental health is identified as a concern or potential concern.

Oranga Tamariki also told us Towards Wellbeing is notified whenever tamariki and rangatahi in its care are identified as at risk of suicide. Towards Wellbeing is a suicide risk assessment and monitoring programme that provides advice to social workers who are working with tamariki and rangatahi who may be suicidal. It is delivered by Clinical Advisory Services AotearoaCloseAotearoa
New ZealandView the full glossary (CASA).

Data provided by Oranga Tamariki shows that over the reporting period it completed the following screens:

• 301 SACS
• 3,073 SKS
• 724 Suicide Risk Assessments

It is unclear how many tamariki or rangatahi these assessments relate to, how many tamariki and rangatahi required these screens, in what situation they were required, or how well the screens are working. It is also not possible for us to compare how the use of screens is tracking across years because:

• in 2021/22 Oranga Tamariki gave us data on the number of screens undertaken from a sample used in case file analysis, but this did not reflect the total number of screens undertaken that year
• in 2022/23 it provided no data as it stopped including the screens in its case file analysis.

Oranga Tamariki told us it is in the process of scoping a full review of its self-harm and suicide guidance. It told us the review activities will include aligning guidance with its practice framework and approach, reviewing the screens it uses and whether these remain the most appropriate tools. There is an opportunity for Oranga Tamariki to also review the data it captures around the use of tools to respond to self-harm and suicide, to better understand and respond to self-harm and suicidal ideation.

Tamariki and rangatahi are not visited as often as they should be

Having a positive relationship with tamariki and rangatahi is critical for a social worker to do their job and this is helped through regular social worker visits. Visits are also how social workers can understand how plans are working, and if needs are being met.

In our monitoring, most tamariki and rangatahi we spoke with told us they felt their social workers visited as often as they needed them to. The primary exception to this was some tamariki and rangatahi in some group homes and secure residences, who told us they did not get to see their social worker. Some Oranga Tamariki group home kaimahi also told us that tamariki and rangatahi mostly don’t get to see their social workers once they enter the group home. A couple of professionals in group homes, in both Auckland and Canterbury, thought this is because social workers assume these tamariki and rangatahi are safe in the group home, so they can focus on visiting other tamariki and rangatahi on their caseloads instead.

“I feel like, once they get a place, they don’t worry about their kids. There’s nil face-to-face.” ORANGA TAMARIKI GROUP HOME KAIMAHI

Most whānau caregivers who spoke about social worker visits with tamariki and rangatahi told us that these were occurring, and that they improved the relationship between tamariki and rangatahi and their social worker. In contrast to this, most non-whānau caregivers who spoke to us about social worker visits with tamariki and rangatahi did not think they were happening regularly enough for tamariki and rangatahi in their care. Our analysis shows that there was no significant difference in the frequency of visits for tamariki and rangatahi placed with whānau caregivers, compared to those placed with non-whānau caregivers.

While tamariki and rangatahi we spoke with generally felt they saw social workers often enough, data shows the proportion of tamariki and rangatahi who are visited regularly by their social workers has not improved. This is despite the Oranga Tamariki response to our 2022/23 Experiences of Care in Aotearoa report stating that “available data indicates that there has been a decline in the number of outstanding visits to tamariki nationally during the report period”16, and its stated commitment, over the last three years, to focus on this area.

Oranga Tamariki lead indicator 10

Tamariki have received regular visits over the preceding 12 months

70%2021/2022 65%2022/2023 66% 2023/2024

In its 2023/24 Annual Report, Oranga Tamariki states it has not met the standard it set for itself, which is 95 percent of tamariki and rangatahi in care having regular engagement with their social workers.

Although there has been no meaningful improvement in the proportion of tamariki and rangatahi receiving regular visits from their social workers, Oranga Tamariki stated that 91 percent of tamariki in care had received at least four visits over the 12 months, and 52 percent had at least six visits over the 12 months. It also explained that in 26 percent of those cases there was evidence of factors outside the control of the social worker that prevented the visit, including tamariki not being home for planned visits¹⁷.

While this is helpful context, it doesn’t change the fact that a third of tamariki and rangatahi in care are not visited as regularly as they need to be. Further, our analysis also indicates that tamariki and rangatahi Māori were less likely to be visited regularly by their social workers than non-Māori (63 percent compared to 71 percent). There was no significant difference in how often tamariki and rangatahi in whānau placements were visited compared to those in non-whānau placements. In contrast to this, our analysis shows that disabled tamariki and rangatahi were more likely to be visited regularly than non-disabled tamariki and rangatahi.

The Minister for Children has identified increasing the frequency of visits as a priority area for improvement. Oranga Tamariki has been asked to report quarterly from September 2024 on the percentage of tamariki and rangatahi in its care who have been visited by their social worker at least once in the eight weeks prior.

In its final report, Whanaketia – Through pain and trauma, from darkness to light, the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faithbased Care¹⁸ noted that the State “failed to properly monitor the care of children and young people in institutions, family homes and foster homes. This included infrequent and ineffective monitoring visits by social workers and department inspectors, and unreliable paper-based monitoring”¹⁹. The report goes on to note that “social workers should have been a critical lifeline to the outside world for children and young people who were being abused in social welfare care. However, the Inquiry heard from many survivors, as well as former caregivers and social workers, that social workers visited less frequently than departmental policy required them to, and sometimes did not visit at all. State documents reviewed by the Inquiry show that social workers’ caseloads were often too high to effectively manage, which meant they visited children less regularly than required”²⁰. Although the Royal Commission focused on events in the past, this further highlights the importance of prioritising social work visits.

In Part Four, we report that abuse and neglect of tamariki and rangatahi in care continues to increase. Tamariki and rangatahi are more likely to be abused in residences (by other young people) and when they have returned home. Tamariki and rangatahi are not visited frequently enough by their social workers when they have returned home to their parents’ care while remaining in the custody of Oranga Tamariki. We also heard in our monitoring that tamariki and rangatahi are often not visited when in secure residences. Oranga Tamariki was unable to provide data on the frequency of social worker visits to secure residences.

When social workers visit tamariki, Oranga Tamariki data indicates quality engagements are happening

Although the proportion of tamariki and rangatahi being visited regularly has not improved, a new lead indicator from Oranga Tamariki this year²¹ shows that when tamariki and rangatahi are visited, most of the time they receive quality engagement. Oranga Tamariki also calculated this for previous years. It explained that this lead indicator does not look at frequency of visits, just whether there is evidence of quality engagement when tamariki and rangatahi are visited. In 2022/23, the Oranga Tamariki lead indicator measured both frequency of visits and quality engagement.

Oranga Tamariki lead indicator 11

Tamariki have received quality engagement

76%2021/2022 88% 2022/2023 84% 2023/2024

Oranga Tamariki told us about Tohu Oranga cards which it created as a practice tool to support kaimahi to strengthen their relationships with tamariki and rangatahi. It told us the cards were tested with kaimahi across the organisation who reported the cards were helpful in aiding communication between them and tamariki. Oranga Tamariki told us the cards will be rolled out as a practice tool in early 2025.

While most tamariki and rangatahi thought they saw their social workers frequently enough, when we asked them if they were getting what they needed from their social workers, tamariki and rangatahi had mixed views.

Tamariki and rangatahi who told us they were not getting what they needed from their social workers said this was because of frequent social worker changes, poor or no communication, inaccessibility of their social worker, and not following through with support.

“I haven’t talked to him [social worker] since I came up [to region] … my social worker in [another region] doesn’t really contact me. He doesn’t check in; he just drops me off at places. I just need him to tell me what is happening.” CHILD

“She [social worker] never checked in with me. I would have to ask her to catch up, my social worker would reply ’maybe in a few weeks’ two months later.” RANGATAHI

In contrast, some tamariki and rangatahi spoke of how they can call, text or email their social worker when they need something.

“I just tell him [social worker] what I want, and they listen. They just try and make it happen. I feel like I’m listened to sometimes.” CHILD

Results from the most recent (2022) Oranga Tamariki Te Tohu o te Ora survey²² of 10 - 17 year olds in care indicate that 43 percent of tamariki thought their social workers did what they say they would “all of the time”, 46 percent thought their social workers did what they said “most of the time”, 10 percent responded “not much of the time” and fewer than two percent thought their social workers “never” did what they said they would. As the survey was not repeated this year, we do not have more recent data to compare with what we heard in our monitoring.

Oranga Tamariki social workers are under significant pressure

Some Oranga Tamariki kaimahi told us there is a recruitment freeze in their site or region. In response, Oranga Tamariki national office told us there has been no recruitment freeze in place this year. We heard that social workers in sites with more vacancies had greater workload pressures, and some of these kaimahi felt these pressures were because they were not able to recruit to fill the vacancies.

To help us understand the impact of this, we asked Oranga Tamariki about its social work vacancies. Oranga Tamariki advised that, as at June 2024, it had 110 field social worker²³ vacancies across the country. The regions with the highest number of vacancies were Auckland (28) followed by Wellington and Waikato (15 each). Only Gisborne and Marlborough regions had no social worker vacancies.

Data provided by Oranga Tamariki shows it recruited 463 field social workers, more than twice the number who left Oranga Tamariki last year. It told us that 410 of these positions were permanent roles. Over the same period, 203 kaimahi in permanent field social work roles left their jobs. The annual attrition rate for all field social workers in Oranga Tamariki over this same period was 11.8 percent. This is less than the 14 percent turnover in 2022/23 but higher than 10 percent in 2021/22.

We asked Oranga Tamariki if it held data on why field social workers were choosing to leave. It was unable to provide any information on this as we were told it is not collected in a way that specifies roles.

Some social workers told us they have high caseloads, and that this impacts their ability to do everything they need to and can be a risk.

“It’s risk. It’s high risk, it’s so unsafe with such high caseloads. The recommended numbers are 20 children for each social worker. It balances out with wiggle room, but 50+ is beyond wiggle room.” ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI

“Caseloads are high, people get stressed … certainly in Care and Protection and Intake.” ORANGA TAMARIKI KAIMAHI

This aligns with findings from the Royal Commission of Inquiry previously referenced in this chapter. When we asked Oranga Tamariki about this, it told us it does not have a specific policy on social worker caseloads, but its collective agreements with the Public Service Association (PSA) and National Union of Public Employees (NUPE) include a protocol for monitoring and supporting kaimahi workload. The protocol defines high caseloads as:

• 20 individual tamariki or rangatahi in care and protection
• 10 individual tamariki or rangatahi in youth justice
• 30 caregivers in the caregiver recruitment and support service.

Oranga Tamariki also told us that, as at 30 June 2024:

• 919 social workers were holding a care and protection caseload as the key social worker with an average of 16.2 tamariki and rangatahi
• 152 social workers were holding a youth justice caseload as the key social worker, with an average of 7.2 rangatahi
• 130 caregiver social workers were holding a caseload with an average of 18.8 caregivers (approved or under assessment).

This data indicates that the average social worker caseload is in line with the protocols that Oranga Tamariki has with the PSA and NUPE. However, this does not align with what we regularly heard from social workers, supervisors and community organisations about their caseloads. We also heard that other kaimahi, such as social work supervisors, hold cases.

Oranga Tamariki said it does not encourage supervisors or roles other than social workers to hold cases, and that it has a policy that no student social workers are to be key workers24 on a case. It noted that supervisors sometimes elect to hold cases for example when a case is transitioned from one social worker to another. It advised that, as at 30 June 2024, almost one third of supervisors were holding caseloads, with an average of 5.7 cases per supervisor. We also heard in our engagements that supervisors were sometimes holding caseloads and that this was to prevent them overloading their social workers, but that it did have an impact on their ability to provide quality supervision.

“I struggle. My caseload is high. Two days a week I’m a social worker and three days I’m a supervisor.” ORANGA TAMARIKI SUPERVISOR

“I would like to have a lot more reflective supervision with my social workers and be able to go out on visits with them, but we are limited in our capacity, and we are carrying caseloads now too.” ORANGA TAMARIKI SUPERVISOR

What we heard about workload does not reconcile with the caseload data Oranga Tamariki provided, however for some social workers, the reality is that they feel under pressure.

A shortage of social workers may be adding to the workforce pressure

There is a shortage of social workers across Aotearoa, and efforts are being made by the Social Workers Registration Board and others to address this. In its November 2023 briefing to the incoming Minister for Social Development and Employment, the Social Workers Registration Board noted that “there is now an increasing shortage of social workers to meet demand”²⁵ and that “by 2024 there will likely be more social workers leaving the profession than registering”²⁶. Its website²⁷ states that this is due to fewer students completing social work programmes and registering, more social workers leaving the profession, and a higher demand for a social work profession that is culturally competent and professionally regulated.

Recent developments in pay equity²⁸, as well as a decline in public trust²⁹, may also mean that Oranga Tamariki is no longer as competitive an employer as it once was. Around half of all registered social workers employed by Oranga Tamariki³⁰ responded to the Social Workers Registration Board’s annual workforce survey for 2023 (the most recent available at time of writing). The results showed that Oranga Tamariki social workers:

• want to make a difference in people’s lives, and this was their highest motivation for entering and remaining in the profession
• included 16 percent who plan to leave the profession in the next five years (a loss of over 190 social workers) – less than half of these (43 percent) cited retirement as the main reason, with other reasons including workload pressures, lack of professional support and low workplace morale
• reported lower levels of employer support (when compared to social workers from other organisations) across all categories, except for payment of registration and practising certificate fees, where they reported the highest level of support
• were more likely to identify the recruitment and retention of social workers as the biggest challenge to the profession, followed by public perception
• were slightly less likely to say their employer has adequate policies and procedures in place to deal with serious issues with a social worker’s practice and/or conduct appropriately and safely (87 percent compared to 91 percent of total survey respondents). Many referred to a lack of action and a perception that staffing shortages can lead to issues being “swept under the carpet” and policies being interpreted differently across teams.

Systems that Oranga Tamariki social workers use sometimes get in the way

As in previous years, we heard some Oranga Tamariki social workers are struggling with unwieldy systems. We heard some of these systems, including CYRAS, can result in work taking longer than necessary and that poor connections between systems sometimes mean social workers need to duplicate information across systems. For example, Oranga Tamariki kaimahi told us that information contained in the new Caregiver Information System (CGIS) is not automatically transferred into CYRAS, and vice versa. This means kaimahi sometimes manually replicate the same information in each system. Information about additional caregiver supports required to meet tamariki needs should be in CYRAS, but unless the tamariki social worker and caregiver social worker are working closely together, this information may not be visible in CGIS. In the absence of communication, this can be a barrier to meeting tamariki and rangatahi needs.

Social workers we talked with had varying knowledge of system requirements. Some knew how to work around challenges and others did not. One social worker told us they could spend a whole day getting information from CYRAS for a referral.

Oranga Tamariki recognised this as a barrier, and its 2023/24 Annual Report outlines what it is doing to upgrade frontline technology systems, including CYRAS. In our future reports we will look to understand how these technology changes are supporting frontline practice.

Tamariki and rangatahi must have their needs understood

Tamariki and rangatahi come into care because of either safety and/or serious behavioural concerns. It is essential that thorough, timely and accurate assessments and plans based on the immediate and long-term needs of tamariki and rangatahi are completed to support positive life outcomes.

Although the Oranga Tamariki Lead Indicator suggests a high level of compliance in this area, it does not provide an accurate measure of what the NCS Regulations require.

1 The NCS RegulationsCloseNCS Regulations
(National Care Standards and Related Matters) Regulations 2018 View the full glossary do not state which type of needs assessment is needed, but there are two types of needs assessments commonly used by Oranga Tamariki. A Tuituia informed needs assessment documents the needs, strengths and risks for tamarikiClosetamariki
Children (plural) aged 0-13 yearsView the full glossary and rangatahiCloserangatahi
Young person aged 14 – 21 years of ageView the full glossary. It sets out the circumstances that led to them coming into care, including the concerns Oranga Tamariki wants to address, particularly needs around safety, and connection to whānauClosewhānau
Whānau refers to people who are biologically linked or share whakapapa. For the Monitor’s monitoring purposes, whānau includes parents, whānau members living with tamariki at the point they have come into care View the full glossary. The other commonly used assessment is a Gateway assessment, which is a specialist assessment that looks to comprehensively identify the health, disability and education needs of tamariki and rangatahi
engaged with Oranga Tamariki. They are undertaken in conjunction with health and education agencies who collectively put in place a plan to meet the needs identified by the Gateway assessment. All tamariki and rangatahi entering care should have a Gateway assessment unless they are already accessing services and there would be no additional benefit.
2 Regulation 10.
3 Oranga Tamariki requires all tamariki and rangatahi in care or custody to have an All About Me Plan. This is the primary plan that Oranga Tamariki works from. It supports any overarching Family Group Conference (FGC) or court plan.
4 The Oranga Tamariki Act requires a section 128 plan (also known as a court plan) for the following orders: A services order under section 86, a support order under section 91 in respect of any child or young person, an order (other than an interim order) under section 101 placing any child or young person in the custody of any person, an order under section 110 appointing any person as the sole guardian of a child or young person, or a special guardianship order under section 113A.
5 Oranga Tamariki Annual Report on compliance with the NCS Regulations 2023/24 page 7.
6 https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latest-research/Te-Matataki-2023/Te-Matataki-2023_FINAL.pdf
7 This is discussed under Part Six of the NCS Regulations.
8 This year Oranga Tamariki trialled a new, temporary frontline role to support social workers. Allied Support Workers can take on tasks that don’t require a social work qualification, to free up social workers to focus on work that does require a social work qualification.
9 Oranga Tamariki, Gateway Assessment Review, https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latestresearch/Gateway-Assessment-Review-Findings/Gateway-Review-Evidence-Report.pdf
10 There are several reasons that services may not have been provided, including but not limited to lack of guardian consent to the
actions in the plan, lack of available services, or because referrals to services have not been made.
11 Oranga Tamariki, Gateway Assessment Review, page 22. https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latest-research/Gateway-Assessment-Review-Findings/Gateway-Review-Evidence-Report.pdf
12 Oranga Tamariki, Mental health and wellbeing needs of children and young people involved with Oranga Tamarik: in-depth assessment, https://www.orangatamarikiactionplan.govt.nz/assets/Action-Plan/Uploads/Understanding-need/Mental-health-and-wellbeing/OTMW-Needs-Assessment_final-for-publication_Redacted.pdf
13 ibid.
14 From research in the Statistics NZ Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI). 15–17-year-olds were grouped by whether they had no contact with Oranga Tamariki; some form of intervention from Oranga Tamariki (for example a child and family assessment or a Family Group Conference); or whether they were in the care or custody of Oranga Tamariki. Self-harm hospitalisations were identified by looking for hospitalisations with diagnosis codes that indicated injury or poisoning that was deliberate self-harm or self-harm with indeterminate intent. Figures show the percentage of the group who experienced such a hospitalisation during 2022.
15 https://practice.orangatamariki.govt.nz/core-practice/practice-tools/other-practice-and-assessment-tools/sacs-kessler-and-suicidescreens-sks/
16 Oranga Tamariki response, page 3. https://aroturuki.govt.nz/assets/Reports/EOCR2223/OT-Response-EOCR-022-2023.pdf
17 Oranga Tamariki 2023/24 Annual Report, page 71.
18 Whanaketia – Through pain and trauma, from darkness to light is the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care. It reported on the abuse and neglect of children, young people and adults in the care of the state and faith-based institutions in AotearoaCloseAotearoa
New ZealandView the full glossary New Zealand between 1950 and 1999.
19 Royal Commission of Inquiry report Whanaketia, Part 7, page 182, 2024 https://www.abuseincare.org.nz/assets/Whanaketia/PDFdownloads/Whanaketia-part-7.pdf
20 ibid page 183.
21 Although this is a new lead indicator this year, Oranga Tamariki was able to calculate this for previous years.
22 https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/About-us/Research/Latest-research/Te-Matataki-2023/Te-Matataki-2023_FINAL.pdf.
23 Field social worker includes social workers (caregiver, care and protection, youth justice, adoptions, S132 report writers, contact centre), senior practitioners, supervisors, differential response co-ordinators, hospital liaisons, specialist child interviewers, and family violence response specialists.
24 The Oranga Tamariki Practice Centre notes that a supervisor allocates a key worker for every tamaiti or rangatahi with an open assessment, investigation or intervention. Usually the allocated key worker is a social worker, but in specific instances it may be a transitional or youth worker, or a youth justice coordinator see: https://practice.orangatamariki.govt.nz/our-work/assessment-andplanning/assessments/intake-and-early-assessment/allocating-a-key-worker-and-co-worker/
25 Social Workers Registration Board, Briefing to Incoming Minister November 2023, page 9, sourced from https://swrb.govt.nz/publication-briefing-incoming-minister/
26 ibid, page 7.
27 https://swrb.govt.nz/
28 In 2022, the Government agreed to extend pay equity to all community and iwiCloseiwi
TribeView the full glossary organisations who employ social workers and receive funding from the State, so that rates of funding for social work roles are in line with what Oranga Tamariki social workers are paid https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/pay-equity-extended-thousands-more-social-workers.
29 Takada, A. for Oranga Tamariki Evidence Centre, Analysis of the decrease in Reports of Concern, April 2024.
30 The survey was offered to social workers renewing their practising certificates over a two-month period. 4,411 social workers out of 8,705 responded (51% response rate). Over a quarter (27% or 1,201 participants) worked for Oranga Tamariki. This aligns with the proportion of the full practising workforce of social workers employed by Oranga Tamariki (26% or 2,245 of the total 8,705 social workers practising in 2022/23).