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November 17, 2016 at 3:47 PM

Lifesaving women's support service faces uncertain future after government funding cuts

An Auckland women's support service has had $30,000 of its government funding cut. 

The free service is provided by the Auckland Women's Centre in Grey Lynn.

For the past 14 years it has received $30,000 in funding, however it wasn't renewed on June 30.

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Special report: Daughters speak of abused mum

Katrina Drummond was trapped. She didn't want to stay with her ex-husband Martin Cranswick Schofield. But he had put money into her house when she couldn't afford to keep it, and now leaving him would mean leaving her home. She was stuck, and Schofield knew it.

When she finally did decide she was going anyway, Schofield flew into a rage. He vandalised Drummond's car and then battered the 47-year-old mother of three to death with a hammer.

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Social worker there to hear stories

"It's a privilege to be allowed into people's lives and to hear their stories. To be part of their journey simply by being there when they need."

Social worker Sinead Thomas is based at Tutaki Youth Inc, working closely with the police family violence preventions team to improve outcomes and break the cycle for individuals and families across the Central Taranaki policing area.

Sinead says working at Tutaki Youth Inc is inspiring, as she works alongside a team of people all equally dedicated to playing their part in the battle against domestic violence and its long-lasting effects on the community.

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Retail round up for refuge

Three of the Waikato region's biggest retail chains have teamed up with the goal of raising $100,000 for Waikato Women's Refuge during the week of November 14.

Mitre 10, Z Energy and New World independent retailers from across the Waikato - 37 stores in total - will ask customers to round up their purchases next week.

All proceeds will go to Waikato Women's Refuge where funds will be distributed to refuges in Thames, Waitomo, Tokoroa and Hamilton.

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Working toward better support

The "new social investment approach" is targeted to getting people off benefit and into work. But there is no data collected to show whether people are doing any better when they come out of the welfare system; whether they have obtained work that provides well enough for their families or what kind of hours they are having to work just to make ends meet. As evidenced by researcher Alicia Sudden, people may end up suffering the ill-effects of precarious, underpaid employment that negatively impacts upon the lives of their families. Furthermore, some Working for Families (WFF) tax credits are given only for parents who work enough hours to be eligible, meaning a large proportion of families off-benefit but in casualised employment may be missing out on the In-Work Tax Credit (IWTC) worth at least $72.50.

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Is a 40-hour week the answer to prisoner rehabilitation?

With a record number of people in prison and re-offending rates stubbornly high, the country's prisons are putting the focus on work skills to get inmates ready for life on the outside.

But why would an employer choose to put a prisoner or someone with a criminal record on their payroll?

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Kids who watch porn won’t necessarily turn into sex offenders

Recent media campaigns have linked children watching online pornography to an increase in the number of school children committing sexual assault.

One article, from Australia, linked school students sexually assaulting each other to the rise in online porn.

But is there evidence children watching online porn is linked to an increase in sexual offending?

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Domestic violence endemic in Samoa says Ombudsman

Samoa's Ombudsman, Maiava Iulai Toma, is launching a Commission of Inquiry into a surge in domestic violence.

Next year's inquiry will be chaired by Maiava with two academics - from New Zealand and the National University of Samoa.

The latest government figures show reported domestic violence cases in Samoa have soared.

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