Te Tai Tokerau MP Kelvin Davis full of praise for Kind Hands, will look into funding concerns

Te Tai Tokerau MP Kelvin Davis with 16-month-old Taonga Peita at Kind Hands Respite Cottage in Whangārei. Photo / John Stone

He waved a magic wand when he visited and those behind Kind Hands Respite Cottage are hoping Kelvin Davis will help them with their funding concerns.

The Te Tai Tokerau MP visited the respite cottage, run by Sharlene Clements in Whangārei on Friday.

Down on the floor with Taonga Peita, Davis waved a wand to crack a smile from the 16-month-old.

The cottage, which opened at the end of July, provides respite care for children from newborns to age 6 who are "medically fragile" so their parents can have a break, spend time with their other children or run errands.

Davis said it was obvious Clements did what she did for love. "There's a real need in community for facilities like this."

He was surprised to learn it was the only facility in Northland for this age group.

"It's incredible the dedication, the support she's showing to these children."

He said facilities like this took strain off parents and families with children with high needs.

"There are issues around funding and support for whanau."

Members of the charitable trust which sits alongside the cottage outlined these to the minister.

Davis said there was funding everybody got whether they were Kind Hands or other daycares, but there were more costs for something like Kind Hands.

"Obviously, these children have higher needs than children going to a regular daycare so maybe there should be greater consideration for that."

He said his office would get down into the details and look into writing to the appropriate minister to see if anything could be done.

Clements said unlike other daycares, Kind Hands has smaller numbers and higher needs. The cottage always has a registered nurse on site.

"It's not that parents aren't happy to pay - they are but they want to be able to pay the same as if their child went to an ordinary daycare."

Parent and trustee Miranda Shacknell said at an ordinary daycare parents paid an amount on top of the funding. If parents at Kind Hands paid the same amount there would still be a gap in funding.

"What we'd like is the extra funding for the extra needs they have."

She, along with other families, are eligible for respite funding but said it worked out at about a day fortnight.

Clements said the cost to attend Kind Hands varies from child to child.