The Salvation Army’s social policy mission officer, Ian Hutson, told the Front Page that there are six pillars of reintegration: accommodation, oranga/wellbeing, education and training, family/whānau/community support, skills for life, and employment.
The charitable organisation’s first report addressing the hurdles faced by people leaving prison is focused on the difficulties in finding suitable accommodation.
“Some people just don’t know when they’re going to be released and, when they are, sometimes it’s all of a sudden … If they haven’t got something that’s there waiting for them, those people haven’t got a plan," Hutson said.
Many people do not have time to plan, do not have networks to draw on and often lack ID, which blocks access to banking, MSD support and other basic services.
He also argues that the Steps to Freedom grant, which hasn’t changed since 1991, is not enough to secure housing.
“They need to get good information about what’s available, what processes they need to go through, and what help they can get, not just for them, but for their family as well.
“We thought that assessments should take place at some point about what kind of housing they need, including more supportive accommodation, because it would pick out whether someone’s got mental health needs and maybe should do some sort of addiction course or something,” he said.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about:
- Where current support falls short
- Stigma and the housing market
- The case for a bond bank
- A shift in attitude is needed.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5pm. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
