1450 children live in poverty in our region
How much of a problem is child poverty in Nelson, Tasman? Samantha Gee talks to a worker at the frontline.
It isn’t uncommon for Kay GuytonMiller to receive a text in the middle of the night from someone in need of help.
‘‘Have you got a blanket?’’ read one, from a young man with no home.
Guyton-Miller knows about the extent of poverty in Nelson, because for the people she works with, it is their reality.
‘‘The other day I went to a place and the kids had no beds, they were sleeping on the floor in the lounge and on the couch.’’
She called St Vincent de Paul in Nelson and within an hour, two beds and mattresses had been delivered to the home.
Guyton-Miller said people underestimated the extent of poverty in Nelson.
‘‘When they say they have nothing, that actually means they have nothing.’’
She is the woman behind Angel in my Street. Funded by the Nelson Tasman Charitable Trust, she is a community worker of sorts who links those who are struggling with the support they need.
Well connected in the Stoke community, Guyton-Miller has been an advocate for people struggling to find employment and experiencing social issues for almost two decades.
She noticed people who were struggling often went without washing powder, toilet paper or other personal hygiene items.
Her white Toyota Previa, with Angel in My Street signwritten on it, was known as the ‘‘neverending van’’ and she likened it to an ice-cream truck.
‘‘It’s just little stuff but it makes a big difference,’’ she said. ‘‘It goes out as fast as it comes in.’’
Homelessness was one of the biggest issues for those living in poverty and Guyton-Miller said lack of suitable housing was an ongoing problem in the region.
While alcohol and drugs were often a factor, family circumstances contributed too.
Guyton-Miller said she probably had a list of over 100 people who needed somewhere to live and in some cases, people were living in their cars.
She knew where people in need could get a free meal, warm clothes when they had none and which backpacker hostels and campgrounds had room for those without anywhere to go.
‘‘But that doesn’t solve it, it’s only three days where they don’t have to worry about being on the streets.’’
Twice a week, Guyton Miller works at Stoke School as a social connector. A child might show up to school without lunch and it was Guyton-Miller’s job to look into it and make contact with the family to see how else she could support them.
While her role was to see what she could do to improve someone’s situation, she always reflected that back to the family and asked what they could do to help themselves.
She helped people with budgeting, taking people to the supermarket to show them how to go budget shopping and put together cheap meals.
She recently organised a clothing grant for a teenage girl who was without support after one parent went to jail and the other left town. Guyton-Miller had worked with the young woman for several years but had no idea this was the first time she had been shopping for new clothes.
‘‘I was really shocked that someone could go all their life not having new clothes.’’
Is child poverty a problem in Nelson?
The 2016 Technical Report on Child Poverty found that nearly one in three New Zealand children were living in poverty.
Across Nelson and Tasman, that equated to about 6000 children.
Nationally, 28 per cent of children are living in low income homes. A low income home is defined as one that earns less than 60 per cent of the median income.
More than 5000 children are living in homes across Nelson and Tasman where the income is less than $28,000 a year. That’s less than $550 per week. Material hardship is defined when children live in a household where they go without seven or more necessary items for their wellbeing. That included a lack of enforced essentials, financial stress and vulnerability, economised, cut back or delayed purchases or being in arrears more than once in the last year.
Nationally, 14 per cent of children are living in material hardship, across Nelson and Tasman. That equalled more than 2500 kids.
Severe poverty affecting 8 per cent of children was defined when they were living in low-income households and facing material hardship. Across Nelson and Tasman, there are 1450 children living in severe poverty.