Families already doing it tough in Auckland’s lower income areas are experiencing further hardship under the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown.
Food and education are two things that are coming up short with support services in the region experiencing a huge increase in demand.
Māngere Budgeting Services is seeing queues starting well before 6am.
“This last three weeks we have never seen numbers like it,” says CEO Darryl Evans.
Times were tough for many prior to lockdown, now it’s dire.
Margaret Perry says it’s been difficult to buy proper food from the supermarket.
“For the last three weeks we have just been living on baked beans on toast because every time I try and go and get meat from Countdown there’s nothing there,” she tells 1 NEWS.
Her seven children are often hungry, making learning from home near impossible, she says.
“They are behind already but they are going to be way behind now and it's hard,” she says.
For Tongan mum Kasa who desperately wants her kids to do well, it’s futile.
Her English is basic so she can’t help them with school work.
The family can’t afford internet and are unsure how to set up equipment given by the school.
The Minstry of Education has started rolling out hard copy learning packs for Māori.
And for Pasifika there’s a 10-week programme for parents delivered by app or radio to help them support their children’s learning.
Before the lockdown, Māori and Pasifika had much lower NCEA pass rates than anyone else but were starting to close the gap. When school gates reopen, the fear is over what gains may have been lost.
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