Statement of Intent 2008 - Outcome Four: Families and whānau

Supporting families and whānau to be safe and resilient. Families and whānau are able to support their members’ wellbeing, identity, participation in society and interdependence

What we are seeking to achieve

• families and whānau have the knowledge, capabilities, skills and resources to support theirmembers to play a fully functional role
• families and whānau provide a safe and secure environment, where all members live free from violence
• Families and whānau are strong and resilient

What we will do to achieve this outcome

• We will provide early support
• We will provide intensive support to high need and at risk families
• We will help families participate in their communities
• We will focus considerable resources on eliminating family violence

Departmental output expenses that contribute

Vote Social Development

• Care and Protection Services
• Development and Funding of Community Services
• Family and Community Services
• Management of Service Cards (MCOA) Administration of Community Services Card Output Class
• Policy Advice and Support to Ministers (MCOA) Social Policy Advice Output Class Crown Entity Monitoring Output Class

---

What we will do to achieve this outcome over the next three years…

We will provide early support

• provide employment and social assistance services to help families provide for their members.

Programmes and initiatives to be delivered in the medium-term include:

• contract providers to deliver Parent Support and Development Programmes (transferred from the Ministry of Education) including: Parents as First Teachers (PAFT) and HIPPY
• Strengthening Families
• Early Years Service Hubs
• develop and implement the Carers’ Strategy
• provide an Integrated Service Response to families in need.

We will help families participate in their communities

• research the wellbeing of families and the issues they face today and in the future
• provide resources and services that enable families and whānau to take an active part in their communities
• provide adoption services to people who wish to adopt children, and to adopted people and birth parents who wish to exchange identifying information.

Programmes and initiatives to be delivered in the medium-term include:

• provide teenage parents with better access to support services for themselves and their children through Teen Parent Coordinators
• contract providers to deliver SAGES - Older People as Mentors programme.

We will focus resources on eliminating family violence

• run a Family Violence Intervention Programme
• support communities to undertake family violence prevention initiatives
• provide funding and support for community-based services that support parents and other family members and work to prevent violence within families.

Programmes and initiatives to be delivered in the medium-term include:

• co-ordinate the Taskforce for Action on Violence within Families
• contract advocates to assist and support children and young people who witness family violence
• work with the Families Commission to deliver the Campaign for Action on Family Violence (including campaign website and 0800 family violence intervention line)
• administer the Family Violence Community Action Fund.

Policy advice

• provide policy advice on programmes and services that encourage the development of well functioning, supportive families
• provide research and analysis to inform policy and service development.

---

How we will demonstrate success in achieving this outcome

Measure used to assess the contribution of programmes and initiatives reflect a mix of social situation indicators and performance monitoring of specific progrmammes and campaigns.

Outcome indicators – social situation of families
Indicator	Current	Trend
Percentage of families with dependent children with net-of-housing cost incomes below 60% of median	20% (2004)	Declining
Source: Perry, B. (2007) Household incomes in New Zealand: trends in indicators of inequality and hardship 1982 to 2004 Ministry of Social Development, Wellington
Percentage of households with dependent children with no adult employed	15% (2004)	Declining
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Household Labour Force Survey, derived by Ministry of Social Development. Excludes households where all members are outside the ages of 18-64 years. (This is a measure of parental employment. Have to exclude households with both dependent and adult children because adult child could be employed.)

Performance measure	Standard 2008/2009
Family Start
The number of “current active clients” receiving Family and Early Start services will be between:	5,500 – 6,000
The number of Family Start sites will be no less than:	32
Level of public awareness of the key messages of the Changing Attitudes and Behaviours Campaign	60%
The number of visits to the campaign website	4,000 – 5,000
The number of community projects funded through the Changing Attitudes and Behaviours Community Action Fund will be	45 - 65

---

How we will measure cost effectiveness of the interventions

Secure standard of living

Measuring the effects of the Working for Families programme is a key focus for the Ministry and Inland Revenue Department. A range of resources has been committed to the evaluation. Working together we will estimate the effects of the Working for Families programme on employment, incomes and poverty. In order to explore the impact of the programme, administrative data from the Ministry and Inland Revenue have been linked and survey data have been added. We will be able to compare families before and after the implementation of the programme.

Family violence

Two national surveys will be undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the mass media campaign in reducing family violence. Ongoing reports will be provided throughout the campaign.

The first survey will measure the level of awareness of the family violence prevention campaign, who it’s reaching, and what messages people are retaining. The second survey will measure awareness of, and attitudes to, family violence, including the willingness to act if family violence is witnessed.

In the coming year work will commence on the cost of family violence which will update the study which was undertaken in the 1990s.