Cost-of-living crisis hits harder in winter – Editorial

Kiwi children are at risk of serious illnesses caused due to poor sleeping conditions, according to Variety.

Editorial

THE FACTS

• According to Stats NZ, 156,600 kids live in poverty, with many sleeping in cold, damp bedrooms.
• According to children’s charity Variety, about one in 10 children in New Zealand do not have a safe, warm bed of their own.
• More than 200 Northland children are at risk of developing serious illnesses caused by inadequate bedding.

We are now deep into winter and the seasonal storms are lashing the country regularly.

Last week, a weather system swept the country, causing slips, floods, road closures and power outages. Many people were evacuated.

Being forced to leave your home uncertain what you will return to must be a difficult and stressful situation.

The inevitable post-storm clean-up can be a lengthy process, involving hours of physical work and paperwork.

Fortunately, for most of us, such disruptions are overcome and life continues.

But for many Kiwi kids not having a warm, dry bed is a permanent reality.

According to children’s charity Variety, about one in 10 children in New Zealand do not have a safe, warm bed.

Beds and bedding are a basic need. Indeed, in a country as wealthy as ours, they should be considered a right.

It was recently reported more than 200 Northland children are at risk of developing serious illnesses caused by inadequate bedding, sleeping in overcrowded, poorly insulated houses and sleeping on the floor on mouldy mattresses.

According to Variety chief executive Susan Glasgow, bed poverty and material deprivation in Te Tai Tokerau were major concerns.

“Every day we hear pleas for help from parents desperate to get their children off the floor, a mouldy mattress or a sofa, and into a bed of their own,” she told NZME.

According to Stats NZ, 156,600 kids live in poverty, with many sleeping in cold, damp bedrooms.

Apart from the obvious consequences of not having somewhere to sleep, the health impacts have far-reaching consequences.

Children sleeping in crowded, unhealthy, mouldy beds are more likely to have illnesses such as strep throat, bronchiolitis and whooping cough during winter, Glasgow said.

They could also develop rheumatic fever, which can cause permanent heart damage.

According to Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora, there were five new cases of acute rheumatic fever in Northland in 2023, seven in 2024, and as of earlier this month, four so far this year.

Since 2018, the Government has had to report on progress towards child poverty targets.

In February, the latest figures for the year to June 2024 showed none of the three primary child poverty reduction targets had been met.

As the cost-of-living crisis continues to hurt Kiwi families and the economy remains sluggish, it is hard to see how things will improve for our tamariki (children).

But things must change, as a good start in life is the least the nation’s youngsters deserve. Healthy children can develop into extraordinary adults.

Every year, Variety runs its Beds for Kids Winter Appeal to fight bed poverty. In a country that prides itself on being progressive in so many ways, it is a shame we have the need for an appeal such as this.

Every child deserves a warm, safe bed.

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