GIFT CHANNELLING

We need to do more for neurodivergent children in NZ

A large number of children across primary and secondary school in New Zealand aren’t having their learning needs met. I see it every day through my work at ACORN. We support around 225 families a year across Tāmaki Makaurau, and too many of the children we serve aren’t able to access full-time support. They can only attend school for a few hours a day—when a teacher aide is available. That’s not sustainable, and it denies them a basic human right.

Enormous need:support gap

Only 1% of students in Aotearoa receive support through the government’s Ongoing Resourcing Scheme, yet around 15% of children live with some form of neurodivergence or disability. That leaves 14%—thousands of kids—without the help they need. We work with many wonderful schools doing their best, but they simply don’t have the funding or training to provide the specialist support these kids require.

Intervention before age 5 is critical

I believe deeply that early intervention is key. International research backs it up—but so does my lived experience. When we identify children under five and provide direct support—not just consults with teachers or parents—they have a real chance to make developmental gains and even catch up with their peers.

Lacking smart policy

We know that if government spends $100,000 on a child before they start school, that investment can save over $1 million in adulthood. We’re talking about fewer people in the prison system, fewer youth justice cases, lower welfare dependency, better health outcomes. This isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s smart policy.

Too often, we’re the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. We work with teenagers with extreme behaviours who’ve never had any formal support. Many of them end up in Oranga Tamariki care or in the youth justice system. I can’t help thinking: we could have identified them at two years old.

My call to action:

FUNDING GIFT CHANNELLING

ACORN survives on a mixed model—75% of our funding comes directly from families who pay out of pocket. The remaining 25% is philanthropic. That makes access deeply inequitable. The burden is entirely on parents, and most simply can’t afford what their kids need.

That’s why I’m calling on government, social investors, philanthropists, and corporate sponsors: get involved. This is in all of our best interests. If we want long-term improvements—in education, mental health, justice, social wellbeing—it starts with our young children. We need to identify them early, and provide consistent, comprehensive support.

Kiwis left behind

We’re falling behind. I’ve had clients from India, Romania, Armenia, Sri Lanka—even just across the ditch in Australia—who tell me they had more support there than they do here in New Zealand.

One of our clients moved to Australia and now receives 30 hours of fully funded therapy a week. Here, they were getting four.

I’ve lived this personally, too. My son received 20 hours of government-funded therapy per week when we lived in the US. After moving here, it took months just to get him assessed—and the outcome was 30 minutes of speech therapy every three weeks. That’s the difference.

If we support these children rigorously and early, we’re not just helping them survive—we’re channelling the gift of neurodiversity into positive, powerful futures. That’s what this is about.

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The advocate for New Zealander's mental health