On 20 August 70 people from across the sector gathered in solidarity with the whānau and communities they serve to call for urgent change. We joined with Mana Communications, Wellington City Mission, Youth Inspire and Take 10 to bring this to the heart of the capital.
The live-polling was stark. Ninety-two per cent of organisations in the room are facing funding challenges. Eighty-six per cent have seen demand increase, and sixty-eight per cent cannot meet it. Twenty-seven per cent are turning people away and thirty-eight per cent are reducing services and functions. Only four per cent had received funding increases above inflation, and only two per cent say that things feel better than they did three years ago.
So we sat, in our grief and in our strength, and we told it straight to the political panel. The politicians (incumbent and aspiring) reflected that this may be an opportunity for them to grow up as a Parliament and come to cross-party agreement for a long-term sector strategy and to formalise their relationship with an increasingly connected sector.
Media pick up included Breakfast TV (6.40am), RNZ, and this (paywalled) op ed in The Post.
We worked together on a shared statement, which we encourage you to adapt and use:
The state of the sector
Generosity is part of the fabric of our country. Across Aotearoa, we work alongside people whose lives rarely fit neatly within the systems designed to support them. Need seldom arrives alone. A request for food often reveals a whānau facing pressure across many parts of their life.
We see the whole person. Our relationships and local knowledge allow us to reach people who may otherwise be missed or passed between government systems. We also see change early and can respond before hardship becomes crisis.
Yet much of this value remains invisible. Those closest to communities are often furthest from the policy discussions and decisions affecting them.
At the same time, rising demand, short-term funding and heavy compliance are stretching organisations beyond capacity. Competition for scarce funding consumes time and makes collaboration an afterthought. Ultimately, people wait longer for support or fall through the gaps altogether.
At present, our sector is subsidising core government responsibilities.
What a thriving sector could look like
A thriving sector creates a thriving Aotearoa.
People can get help early, close to home, through iwi, hapū and organisations they trust. They can move between services without navigating a maze or repeatedly having to tell their story over and over again.
Our sector’s diversity is a strength. Different organisations provide choice and create trusted pathways into support for different communities. We can work together, respond as needs change and address the systems that allow hardship to take hold.
When support works this way, whānau are stronger and communities are more resilient. More people can participate fully in society, and fewer reach crisis in the first place.
What we can do to move forward together
Moving forward requires a genuine partnership between government, iwi, the sector and those who invest in our communities. We need a shared direction that extends beyond election cycles and is shaped by lived experience from the outset.
At the heart of this must be a better funding relationship. Government funding should be long-term, flexible and sufficient to meet the true cost of doing the work well. Decisions should reflect impact and community trust, rather than an organisation’s ability to produce the slickest funding proposal. Accountability is important, but it needs to be proportionate and focused on outcomes.
We as a sector have a role to play too. We need to work more collectively, strengthen our shared evidence and speak with a clearer voice about the value we create.
Aotearoa’s generosity is one of our greatest strengths, but it cannot carry the weight of our social infrastructure alone. Government must meet its responsibilities and create the conditions that allow our sector, and our country, to thrive.
