Tales from the Trenches

April 2024

housing 300x177 - Tales from the Trenches“Tales from the trenches: The realities of housing in New Zealand” is the latest report from The Salvation Army’s Social Policy and Parliamentary Unit released today. This report shows seven stories from whanau and individuals we walk along side and the challenges they are facing in New Zealand’s housing crisis. These are few of the stories we highlight in the report –

The Toloa family of 6 have moved 3 times in the past 15 months – private rental has created financial hardship and the constant moving mean instability for their children.

Erika left her home due to family violence – Erika describes the Emergency Housing motel as rife with violence, drunkenness, drug dealing, drug usage and prostitution, with no accountability and no consequences.

Maria who has high chronic health needs has mobility and accessibility issues. Many Emergencies Housing and transitional housing do not have the facilities to support accessibility to people with disabilities.

Our report also highlights a way froward from increasing Emergency housing navigators, increasing Accommodation Supplement and recommending local council to integrate inclusionary housing policies.

The paper can be found here: Tales from the Trenches: The realities of housing in New Zealand | The Salvation Army