Sink or swim: leaving care in New Zealand

Deborah Yates

New Zealand has fallen behind other Western countries in its attention to young people leaving the statutory care services to undertake independent living. These young people comprise a very small and hidden population here, and very little is known about long-term outcomes for them, except that, anecdotally, they seem to begin to have children early, and to struggle to raise them without coming to the notice of child welfare services.

This qualitative study, aimed at creating an opportunity for this group to voice their issues, listened to eight Pakeha care leavers as they talked about their experiences in care, at the point of leaving care and since leaving care. Like their counterparts overseas, it is clear that they carry more than their fair share of emotional, social and scholastic deficits. They would benefit from legislative, policy and practice reform aimed at assisting them through a gradual transition to adulthood.