Special Needs Grants ... in Wairarapa

As a sub-region, Wairarapa is often included in wider monitoring and reporting for the Greater Wellington region. But by looking specifically at local data, we gain a clearer picture of the challenges facing our communities, which can vary dramatically from those experienced in the larger centres. After last week’s journey into SNGs at a national and regional level, this week Tiff and I take a look at trends in Special Needs Grants data for Wairarapa. 

THE DATA

Wairarapa-specific SNG data is not publicly available. So, since 2019, Planalytics has been using the Official Information Act (OIA) to request this data from the Ministry of Social Development (MSD).

Last week we mentioned the difficulty of obtaining consistent data at a national compared to regional level. Similarly, comparisons are difficult to make with local data provided through the OIA responses. For instance, in 2019 we were provided a full breakdown across SNGs, whereas 2020 data was merged together and provided less detail. This lack of certainty over what data will be provided can make developing a clear picture of need across a long period of time frustrating, if not impossible. 

But never daunted, Tiff got to work digesting what was available and produced some clear graphics for us to ponder. Data visualisation is a great tool to see trends or outliers that would otherwise elude us when presented as words or in a table.

WHAT DID WE FIND?

In last week’s article, we talked about how we expected to see Wellington’s regional trends mirror national trends. But that wasn’t the case. This made us think, would Wairarapa be more like Aotearoa as a whole or perhaps reflect what was happening over the hill? 

*Note that these figures relate to SNGs only, they do not include Recoverable Assistance Payments or Advance Payment Benefits, which are other mechanisms able to be used to assist people in need. 

In fact, Wairarapa is following its own path with the data bucking both national and capital trends. Here in Wairarapa, the 2020 figures for both the number of SNGs and dollar amount dropped from 2019 totals, whilst nationally they leaped, and the regional picture was mixed with the number of SNGs issued decreasing but dollar amount increasing. 

The drop in 2020 can be seen clearly when we look at the data by quarter. This plummet can potentially be explained by the fact that the Work & Income service centre in Masterton was closed during ‘the 2020 lockdown quarter’ and SNG requests had to be made online or over the phone through MSD’s Central Processing Unit. But with the local office having reopened, why haven’t we returned to pre-COVID levels of SNGs? Are the continued lower numbers demonstrating that the community has found other ways to meet need? Or are people finding online or phone applications a better option and no longer go through the Work & Income service centre? If so, could MSD’s Central Processing Unit provide all its data at a spatial level that is meaningful for small communities?

It’s important that we don’t collect data for datas sake. Data only becomes truly meaningful when you can look at it at a local or human scale. Can our government agencies improve the way they collect data so local  communities can readily access it, understand it and use it to improve wellbeing? Can local responders collect data to help with the same thing? 

Or perhaps the data has shown that people are simply better off? Sadly, this seems highly unlikely with housing affordability worsening and reports of community need increasing.

* Information sourced from MSD under the Official Information Act (04/03/2021). Figures represent a count of grants, not a count of clients. A client may have multiple grants in a period and be counted more than once. MSD grants are only one indicator of community need. The data presented therefore does not provide a full picture of community need in Wairarapa.

What are the needs here in Wairarapa? Let’s break down the 795 SNGs issued between April and June this year. As with the national and regional picture, food dominates as both the most commonly issued (66% of all SNGs) and also accounting for the highest amount granted (33%). However, take a look at the charts above. Locally our reasons for assistance are ranked quite differently from New Zealand and Wellington, with emergency housing grants ranked 7th not 2nd. 

FOOD AND EMERGENCY HOUSING

Look at the trends in Wairarapa for food and emergency housing – quite different from the national and regional picture. Wairarapa is a food producing sub-region, so why is food insecurity so prevalent? Our 2019 report, ‘Waste Not, Want Not’, highlighted that in some sectors of our community this need is getting worse. It would be interesting to understand if community-led initiatives such as the Masterton Food Bank and/or the Government’s Ka Ora, Ka Ako (healthy school lunches) programme have been meeting food need locally. And whether food SNGs will begin to increase again in Wairarapa, particularly after the latest pandemic lockdown. Rest assured, we will be keeping an eye on SNG data as it becomes available. Tune in next week for our final article of the Planalytics SNG series where we will look at other indicators of community need, beyond SNG data. 

Mā te huruhuru te manu ka rere - It is the feathers that make the bird fly.
This whakataukī is a metaphor for providing the necessary resources so action can take place.