Appendix 1: Inequities in the rates of material hardship
Material hardship means the percentage of children living in households that go without six or more of the 17 items in the material deprivation index (DEP-17).41 This includes such things as having two pairs of shoes in good condition and not putting off doctor visits.
"Disability" in the figure below refers to children living in a household where there is at least one disabled person.
The sample errors for the estimates of material hardship in the figure range from 1.0 to 6.4 percentage points.
Source: Statistics New Zealand (2025), "Child poverty statistics: Year ended June 2024", at stats.govt.nz.
41: The Ministry of Social Development developed the material deprivation index to measure low living standards and compare different population groups. The Ministry designed it to be easy to use and understand. It asks whether a household has access to the 17 items on the index that most people regard as essential everyday needs.