E Tipu e rea whānau services chief executive Zoe Hawke says although $17 billion has been allocated for the health sector, there are few indications maternal mental health or pēpi hauora will benefit.
“Although we are pleased to see some initiatives taken that could potentially improve the lives of mātua taiohi and hapū māmā, and pēpi, it is also evident that they will continue to struggle if more thought is not put into the details of the announcements to ensure young whānau are provided with targeted support,” Hawke says.
E Tipu e Rea has recently established a transitional housing facility in West Auckland, where it already has a waiting list of 12 young parents.
Hawke stresses that the gains that could be made would be offset with cuts in other areas such as an end to free prescriptions and public transport subsidies – basic practical and everyday supports that help young parents and their tamariki.
“They don’t have their licences because as a young māmā, you left school early before the licensing came about, so actually you haven’t engaged with any licencing programmes, and you do not have a waka because you don’t have a licence, and you can’t afford a waka. So those little things can really make a difference to our whānau accessing services.
“Little cuts like that, although they may seem small to some, certainly make a big impact on our whānau.”
A total of $24 million is being allocated for Gumboot Friday and $9.7 million to establish a National Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund.
“The maternal suicide rates are massive and we need to ask within that pool of pūtea, ‘can we have some it to address this issue?’.”