Child poverty report highlights dilemma of increasing benefit dependency

Summarised by Centrist

Researcher Lindsay Mitchell writes that the latest data suggests that while material hardship among children has decreased, the number of children in benefit-dependent households has increased. 

This raises questions about the long-term impact of rising benefit reliance.

The 2024 Child Poverty Report reveals that, although fewer children are experiencing material hardship, the proportion of children living in households dependent on benefits has grown from 15% in 2017 to 19% in 2024. 

Mitchell observes that: “In respect of children in workless households, in 2022 (latest data) New Zealand was second only to Romania when compared to 26 European countries.”

Material hardship, (assessed by the DEP-17 scale), is still much higher among children in beneficiary families compared to those in working households. 

The report highlights that sole parent households, which constitute 70% of children on benefits, have the highest material hardship rate at 32%. 

“The numbers cannot be encouraged to keep growing,” Mitchell cautions. 

Read more over at Lindsay Mitchell’s blogspot