A new centralised service has been launched to give survivors of abuse or neglect in State care a single point of contact for information and new redress claims.
Lead Coordination Minister Erica Stanford said the State Redress Service will operate on behalf of all State redress agencies, meaning survivors will no longer need to determine which government agency to approach when beginning the process.
The service is intended to provide information, accept new claims and explain the next steps for survivors, including those whose experiences involved more than one State agency or care setting.
“The new service is designed to make State redress easier to access, easier to understand, and provide a more consistent approach across agencies,” Stanford said.
She said some survivors had previously been required to navigate several government agencies and repeatedly recount traumatic experiences while seeking support or pursuing claims.
“Survivors have also had to retell deeply personal experiences multiple times while trying to access information, support and redress. That is not acceptable,” she said.
Under the new system, survivors with claims involving multiple agencies will have their claims coordinated by a single case manager.
The initiative forms part of the Government’s response to recommendations from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.
Existing claims will not need to be restarted and will continue to be managed by the agency currently handling them.
The new service also does not transfer responsibility for deciding claims. Individual agencies will remain responsible for assessing claims, determining outcomes and providing redress.
The State redress system covers the Ministry of Social Development, Oranga Tamariki, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Health New Zealand, Te Puni Kōkiri and Department of Corrections.
Survivors can contact the State Redress Service through its website, by phone, email or post:
- Phone: 0800 110 886
- Phone from overseas: +64 4 910 9886
- Email: contact@info.redress.govt.nz
- Post: State Redress Service, State Redress NZ, PO Box 1556, Wellington 6140
