1 Jul 2021

Matthew Tukaki responds to Oranga Tamariki facility closure

From Checkpoint, 6:08 pm on 1 July 2021

Oranga Tamariki is closing its Christchurch youth facility, pending an investigation into the alleged assault of a child.

A total of 60 staff have either been stood down or will be sent home on full pay in the meantime.

The 10 children living at Te Oranga will be rehoused. It follows a leaked video that shows staff tackling and restraining a child and putting them in a headlock.

OT cannot say if or when the facility will re-open. And the agency is also putting its other residential youth facility under the microscope.

Ko taku manuhiri i naianei ko Matthew Tukaki. He heads up the Oranga Tamariki Ministerial Advisory Board, which is due to report to Kelvin Davis about the agency's future.