Source: Radio New Zealand
Birthright Hutt Valley is closing its doors tomorrow after 60 years of service. Facebook / Birthright Hutt Valley
A family support service in the Hutt Valley is closing its doors tomorrow after 60 years of service.
Birthright Hutt Valley supports single-caregiver whānau in the region, and is the only specialist social service like it in the area.
Public Service Association national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons said the government has failed the Hutt Valley community.
“This closure is a failure of government. Birthright has served this community for 60 years and it’s closing because the government would not fund it adequately, said Fitzsimons.
“It’s heartbreaking. There has been no response from Oranga Tamariki, no plan, and no replacement. Hutt Valley families have been left out in the cold.”
Fitzsimons accused the government of not being serious about children and families doing well in New Zealand.
PSA national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons. Supplied
“This government has chosen tax relief for landlords over a 60-year-old organisation that support single-caregiver families.
“When you allow an organisation like this to close, you are not just failing the families in front of you today – you are failing generations to come.”
Birthright Hutt Valley manager Sarah Szabo said their social workers have helped families navigate Work and Income, supported survivors of family violence, advocated in family court and provided practical help through its Whānau Room.
“In the days since we announced our closure, whānau have been coming to us asking where they can turn to now. And I have had to tell them I do not know. There is nothing else.
“We have laughed and cried with these families. We have been there for some of the hardest moments of their lives. Saying goodbye to them is devastating.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Original source: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/05/21/hutt-valley-family-support-service-closing-doors-after-60-years/