Children and young people have what they need
Government released the Aotearoa New Zealand Homelessness Action Plan (2020-2023) in February 2020 to prevent and reduce homelessness. It provides a multi-year cross-government roadmap towards the Government’s vision that ‘homelessness is prevented where possible, or is rare, brief and non-recurring’.
The Plan sets out an overarching framework with actions to improve the wellbeing and housing outcomes of individuals and whānau who are at risk of, or experiencing, homelessness. The Plan has 18 immediate actions to be put in place in 2020, and a further 18 longer-term actions to be developed for implementation over 2020-2023.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, several immediate actions were adapted or accelerated to meet urgent needs or expected demand, while some other immediate actions will take longer to deliver than initially planned.
Over 1,000 individuals and whānau have been housed in motels across the country as a response to the COVID-19 lockdown.
To respond to opportunities and emerging needs from the COVID-19 pandemic, agencies will bring forward the development of longer-term actions in the action plan. This includes an increased focus on at-risk groups, including young people and children.