· $79 million boost to social service providers
· $36 million in grants for community groups
· $22 million for family violence services
· $20 million to ease impacts of COVID-19 on rural and fishing communities
· $20 million tertiary student hardship fund for 2020
· $15 million boost to Fruit in Schools and digital sales platforms for food producersSupporting our social service providers
Our social services have been a vital part of keeping communities safe and resilient as we face the impacts of COVID-19,
says Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni.
“Social services will continue to play an essential role in supporting people and communities to recover. That’s why we
are investing almost $80 million dollars to continue to provide important support in our communities.
“About $32 million of the additional funding includes responding to the increase in demand for food through food banks
and other community food service providers as a result of COVID-19. This will include funding for a new bulk food
distribution network – ‘New Zealand Food Network’ and support for food banks and other providers.
“We also know that more New Zealanders may need advice on how to best manage their finances, so we are providing extra
funding to all 131 budgeting services so they can respond to the increasing demand for their services.
“Social services are critical to wellbeing, and helping New Zealanders through this unprecedented time, which is why we
will continue to support the important mahi they do,” Carmel Sepuloni said.Grants for community groups to recover from COVID-19 impacts
“We are investing $36 million in grants for community groups to enhance the wellbeing of their local communities in the
COVID-19 recovery response,” Carmel Sepuloni said.
“A specific focus will be made to enable Māori, Pacific, refugee and migrant communities to access this fund.
“The investment will allow groups to contribute to the ongoing response and recovery of the communities they are
connected to and support,” Carmel Sepuloni says.Fruit and vegetable boxes and digital sales platforms for food producers
Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor says due to COVID-19, food supply chains and food retailers have been disrupted,
causing problems with access to food and risking food waste.
“Food at highest risk of being wasted includes the 20% of all fresh fruit and vegetables that move through
non-supermarket channels and 10% of weekly egg production.
“This initiative provides funding to purchase primary produce and distribute it to those in need, scale up Fruit in
Schools to deliver an additional 100,000 fruit and vegetable boxes to children over 10 weeks, and develop and trial
digital platforms to enable other novel solutions to connect food with consumers,” Damien O’Connor said.Boost in funding for family violence services
Budget 20 provided $202.9 million over the next four years to address family violence, and the COVID Response and
Recovery Fund underscores our commitment in this area further.
Under-Secretary to the Minister of Justice Jan Logie says the additional support for family violence providers is
critical at a time when families are spending more time at home, and economic pressures and anxiety have the potential
to spark increased violence.
“$13 million will provide therapeutic services and treatment for children and young people who are exposed to family
violence. This is especially important at a time when the usual support networks of children and young people,
particularly schools, are disrupted due to the lockdown.
“A further $8.6 million over two years will provide grants to around 200 family violence providers to increase their
capacity as they respond to the expected increase in demand for their services as a direct result of COVID-19,” Jan
Logie said.Easing economic and social impacts of COVID-19 on rural and fishing communities
“Our rural and fishing communities already face a lot of challenges, like increased social isolation and reduced access
to services. COVID-19 and the ongoing drought have exacerbated those challenges,” Rural Communities Minister Damien
O’Connor said.
“We’re investing $20 million to increase the scale and reach of support to rural and fishing communities, including
Māori communities.
“Funding will increase access to support, advice and mental wellbeing services to help them recover from the impacts of
COVID-19. It will target support to vulnerable groups, and enable community hubs and advisors to facilitate engagement,
learning and access to services.
“It will also enable primary sector businesses to receive financial and continuity planning advice to support their
recovery,” Damien O’Connor said.Tertiary Student Hardship Fund
“There’s no one-size fits all approach to meeting the financial needs of students who can’t access the general student
supports available, so we’ve set up a $20 million hardship fund to help those students get through the next few months
and keep them engaged in their studies,” Education Minister Chris Hipkins said.
“A major advantage of this approach is that it can be implemented easily and gets money into the hands of students who
need it quickly, distributed by students’ education providers.”