The baby was taken to Christchurch Hospital with serious, unexplained injuries. Photo / George Heard
By Sam Sherwood of RNZ
The mother of a 5-month-old baby on life support after suffering serious, unexplained injuries, including a brain bleed, says she’s “angry, confused” and desperate for answers.
She says the baby, whom RNZ has chosen not to name, was in her own mother’s care while she was out of town as part of an Oranga Tamariki safety plan.
“I feel like the system’s let me down. There was a safety plan put in place. I followed through the safety plan, and the safety plan failed me.”
A police investigation is underway after the baby was taken to Christchurch Hospital on Monday with serious, unexplained injuries. Police say they’re investigating to establish how the baby came to be injured, including speaking with family members.
RNZ understands Oranga Tamariki has been involved with the baby’s family.
It’s understood Ministry for Children received several reports of concern about the baby’s sister in 2024, outlining numerous family harm reports involving the mother as well as the mother’s partner and her own mother.
Further concerns were raised regarding the mother’s care of the baby’s sister and her alleged substance use.
In January 2025, due to the mother’s alleged use of drugs and concerns around a lack of appropriate supervision for the baby’s older sister, a safety plan was put in place for the sister to be in the care of family in the North Island.
A safety plan was also in place for the baby. It’s understood Oranga Tamariki received information from the family about his mother having had an argument with her brother which resulted in police involvement.
The baby’s mother decided she wanted to go to the West Coast with her partner and take with them the baby, who at the time was only 3 months old.
Family were concerned after seeing there were no safe restraints or car seats in the car. They were also concerned about plans to take the baby to a campsite.
The family, who were also worried about the mother’s relationship with her partner following several family harm events and alleged substance use, contacted Oranga Tamariki.
The mother said a safety plan was put in place which meant whenever she went to the West Coast the baby would stay with his grandmother.
The plan noted the woman had an intellectual disability, which could affect her ability to meet her baby’s and her own day-to-day needs.
In an interview with RNZ, she said the 5-month-old woke her up on Saturday morning about 7am. She was set to catch a bus to the West Coast at 8.45am.
“I got him ready, changed his nappy and then I got a bottle ready for him and took him downstairs and then my mum watched him while I went back upstairs so I could get ready to go on the bus.”
She then got a ride to the bus stop, with her baby going along for the ride. She said that as part of the safety plan her baby had to stay with his grandmother when the mother was over on the West Coast.
Then, on Sunday evening, the mother received a call from the grandmother to say her son was having some seizures.
“[She said] they don’t know what the cause is, for me not to panic at that stage, and that the ambulance is on the way.
“Obviously, I didn’t get sleep that whole night. I’ve been on Google researching what could be the cause …”
The woman said she “freaked out” and felt “helpless”.
She got a bus home on Monday morning and went straight to the hospital.
“It was pretty confronting seeing him on tubes and everything on life support … seeing him just so vulnerable, and just trying to understand, how could of this happened?”
She said hospital staff told her that her son suffered a subdural brain bleed, bruising under his arm, and some glass was found with him on his clothing.
Speaking to RNZ on Wednesday, she said she was still trying to wrap her head around what happened.
“I just feel drained. I’ve been crying the whole time.”
She said the baby was undergoing an MRI scan on Wednesday.
“Then they’re gonna take the sedation off, and then see how he’s going and that. But he is doing some breathing on his own too.”
She said she was happy with the safety plan that was put in place and said there had never been any issues with her son staying at the property without her before.
“It’s about putting the kids safe. And, you know, just like with [her older child], you know, I made a hard decision by sending her up north in a lot of ways, I did not want to do that, but I did it for the best interest of [her], so I can better myself as a mum, be the best mum I can possibly be for my two beautiful children.”
She felt “sad, angry, and confused”.
“I’m just trying to figure out why, how did this happen?
“I feel like the system’s let me down. There was a safety plan put in place. I followed through the safety plan, and the safety plan failed me … If I knew any of this was going to happen, I would have never left to go to the Coast for a few days, and that I would have never, you know, I didn’t know this was going to happen.”
She said she understood other people were also at the property over the weekend. The woman’s mother declined to comment when approached by RNZ.
The baby’s mother described her son as a “cheeky” little boy whose personality was just starting to reveal itself.
“He’s giggling a lot, he’s moving around, kicking and that.
“He’s rolled once from his tummy to his back, he doesn’t like his tummy time, so he gets quite moody at me when I put him on his tummy … and then I got really excited with him rolling for the first time.”
Oranga Tamariki told RNZ it was notified after a child was taken to hospital with serious unexplained injuries in Christchurch.
“Given police are currently making inquiries, we are unable to provide further information while this is ongoing,” said Arihia Bennett, tamariki and whānau services national commissioner south.
– RNZ