Introduction
The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care and in the Care of Faith-based Institutions (Royal Commission) was established in 2018 to investigate children, young people, and vulnerable adults’ experiences of abuse and neglect in State and non-State care in Aotearoa New Zealand between the years of 1950-1999.
The Royal Commission ended on 25 June 2024.
The Royal Commission made:
- 95 recommendations in its 2021 interim report, 'He Purapura Ora, He Māra Tipu from Redress to Puretumu Torowhānui'
- 138 recommendations in its final report in 2024, 'Whanaketia – Through pain and trauma, from darkness to light Whakairihia ki te tihi o Maungārongo'.
Of these 233 recommendations, 207 are addressed to the Crown and 26 recommendations are for faith-based institutions and other named organisations in the care and justice systems.
The government response to the 207 recommendations focuses on the following three areas:
- Address the wrongs of the past
- Make the care system safe
- Empower those in care, their whānau and communities.
This website describes the work to address the wrongs of the past through improvements to the redress system for survivors of abuse and neglect in State care.
Changes to existing redress systems
The redress improvements aim to:
Improve redress offerings, alignment and consistency across the system
Resolve redress claims in a timely manner
Improve access to and navigation of redress services
Improve trust and confidence in the redress system
These improvements will be delivered by the following agencies:
- The Crown Response Office
- Ministry of Social Development
- Oranga Tamariki
- Ministry of Education
- Ministry of Health
- Te Puni Kōkiri
- Department of Corrections