Hon Anne Tolley
Minister for Social Development
20 October 2016

Welfare reforms helping more parents into work

Social Development Minister Anne Tolley says the number of people on Sole Parent Support has fallen by more than 15,000 since before welfare reforms were introduced.

“Total benefit numbers have fallen by 3,292 in the year to September 2016 to 283,875, and have risen by 3,698 in the last quarter, as is normal this time of year due to seasonal work,” Mrs Tolley says.

“Sole Parent numbers have continued their strong downward trend, with a fall of 5.2 per cent in the year to September 2016, taking the total number of people receiving Sole Parent Support to 64,372.

“Sole parents have consistently shown a willingness to find and stay in work and we are seeing them respond well to intensive, work-focused case management.

“This has led to more than 48,000 fewer children in benefit dependent homes in the last four years.

“We know that children who grow up in benefit dependent homes are less likely to gain NCEA Level 2, more likely to be the subject of a care and protection notification and more likely to end up on a benefit themselves.

“Supporting parents into employment or study can help us turn this around, and sets a strong example for the children in those homes that study and where work is the norm and highly valued.

“The Bay of Plenty region saw the biggest change with a drop of more than 11 per cent in the last year, while the Auckland and Southern regions also saw significant decreases (6.5 per cent and 5.6 per cent).

“We must do everything we can to continue this momentum and always look for new ways to better support clients into work and study, so they and their families can thrive.”

The latest benefit data is available at: http://www.msd.govt.nz/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/benefit/index.html.

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