The Green Paper – Protection for Vulnerable Children

Thanks to those who met with us in The Commons to discuss The Green Paper put out by the Minister of Social Development to explore ways of addressing the needs of “vulnerable children” in New Zealand.

I think the most compelling realisation as we discussed some of the questions was just what a complex issue this is. It is particularly complex because so many of the perpetrators of the crimes of abuse, violence and neglect have themselves been victims of similar types of treatment. Therefore, they are also victims as well as perpetrators. This means that empathy and understanding has to underpin any approaches to protecting the vulnerable, but at the same time, in order to change the future for these children (and their children - rather than perpetuate the cycles of abuse) a line does have to be drawn in the sand and early intervention is essential to ensure that the children recover from their experiences and the generational cycle does not continue.

Secondly, we discussed the fact that the line in the sand should not be either too high or too low but should reflect the point before which parenting becomes damaging for children. There is a need to clearly determine what “adequate” parenting looks like and ensure that this is what parents are held to account for. It is unreasonable to expect these parents to become exemplary parents, but that what we are looking for is a “C plus pass” (metaphorically speaking).

We discussed the fact that one of the big difficulties in changing what is happening for vulnerable children is the question of what happens to children when they are removed from their families. We are aware that CYFS often takes over the care of vulnerable children as wards of the state, but does not always have the capacity to look after them adequately, sometimes leaving these children just as much at risk as they were previously. We find this unacceptable, but did not have a solution.

While not coming to any hard and fast solutions, we acknowledged that education is central to changing the life possibilities of vulnerable children – this includes effective education for vulnerable children which assists in breaking the generational cycles of poverty, abuse, neglect and violence. Central to this is “empowerment”. A lack of empowerment seems to be at the root of abuse and violence. This is why as a school we are so committed to acknowledging in very positive and real ways the bicultural nature of New Zealand and the importance to us today of Maori as tangata whenua of New Zealand. We have such an amazing opportunity to raise a generation of young people who value Maori and recognise their importance to New Zealand and in that valuing to assist in the empowerment of those most at risk.

We also acknowledged that our community’s “privilege” places on us a greater responsibility to see ourselves as part of the solution rather than removed from the problem. Hence, Amesbury School sees developing students who are socially aware and concerned for others as integral to 21st century learning:

“Sustainability and Justice: Challenging students to adopt new behaviours and practices to secure our future and ensure the well-being of our world and of all life on earth. Creating leaders today, for tomorrow”

In the short time we had to discuss the Green Paper we did not have any “blinding light” insights, but it did remind us that this is a whole community issue, that it will take each one of us acknowledging it as our collective problem and that we are all part of the solution, before any real, sustainable change will occur.

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