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Services for about 4000 at-risk youths are up in the air after Oranga Tamariki cancelled a funding contract with the charity that provides them, Stand Tū Māia.

Chief executive Dr Fiona Inkpen announced Stand Tū Māia was taking Oranga Tamariki to court over its decision to terminate the contract.

The organisation is seeking a court injunction and the existing contract enforced, to stop the government department from acting as if it has been cancelled.

“We strongly believe Oranga Tamariki has committed an egregious breach of good faith in attempting to terminate our integrated contract at short notice, threatening our ability to provide specialist services to thousands of vulnerable children and their families,” she said.

Inkpen said Oranga Tamariki’s decision was “contrary to repeated assurances that frontline services would be maintained”.

Children's Minister Karen Chhour. Photo / Mark Mitchell

“We are an essential frontline service for children who have already been failed by every other part of the system.

“We are effectively the ‘last resort’ for the most vulnerable children in our society and we are deeply concerned about how Oranga Tamariki plans to care for these children and their families,” Inkpen said.

Oranga Tamariki declined to comment, saying the matter was before the court. Children’s Minister Karen Chhour said that as part of Oranga Tamariki’s annual contract process it “reviewed existing and future planned funding for providers”.

“Oranga Tamariki continues to reprioritise investment towards services needed to deliver on its core responsibilities including statutory services such as youth justice, care and protection, transition services, and family and sexual violence services for high-risk young people.

“Contracting is an operational decision, and as this is now a legal matter, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further,” she said.

Stand Tū Māia was established in 2000 to inherit the 80-year legacy of children’s health camps, which were dissolved. Since 2004, Stand Tū Māia had evolved from a general to a specialist service, helping children and families with complex needs.

It had a longstanding relationship with Oranga Tamariki, which contracted it to provide wraparound services.

In 2023, an “integrated contract” to continue providing these services was agreed. The contract would provide support and therapy for about 4000 vulnerable children from 1000 families.

However, according to documents seen by the Herald, Oranga Tamariki raised the prospect of terminating or changing the contract in July.

According to Stand Tū Māia, Oranga Tamariki suggested cancelling the existing contract, and negotiating a new one, aligning the contract to the department’s new priority areas.

Stand Tū Māia, in documents seen by the Herald said it was not clear what parts of the contract Oranga Tamariki wanted to change.

By September 30, Stand Tū Māia had complained the department had not yet paid them a funding instalment under the contract. The money was eventually paid.

Following a meeting in November, Stand Tū Māia was told it would not receive a payment due on December 15 for the next six months of its contract and the department wished to discuss a new contract that would take effect from July 1, 2025.

“Oranga Tamariki’s actions have been a shock to us. In July, officials told us they wanted to review our contract and create a new one.

“It was not until four months later that they confirmed which contract they wanted to review and only in late November that they wanted to cancel the contract on December 31, 2024, only six months into a three-year contract due to expire on June 30, 2026. A new contract would be negotiated to begin from July 1, 2025,” Inkpen said.

Thomas Coughlan is Deputy Political Editor and covers politics from Parliament. He has worked for the Herald since 2021 and has worked in the press gallery since 2018.