Programme helping Kiwi kids in poverty play sport faces closure

A pilot programme that has helped 10,000 children in New Zealand get into physical activity over the past four years has been forced to close due to a lack of funding — but its creators hope they can get it back up and running.

Active Me Kia Tu was originally established in 2021 by Sport New Zealand with Variety Children's Charity as a two-year pilot programme, providing financial assistance to sponsor kids get moving.

The programme initially focused on children in Auckland and Northland but, following its initial success, was expanded to a nationwide effort in 2023.

"We know that cost is the biggest barrier for children living in poverty to be able to participate in physical activity so when Sport New Zealand approached us with this initial pilot opportunity, we jumped at it," Variety CEO Susan Glasgow told 1News.

"What we were hearing from kids' mouths directly was, 'if you can't pay, you can't play' and that was coming from teachers to kids in schools.

"We knew that they did not have the same choices, the same options that their peers and their friends at school enjoyed and so what we've done is widen access to kids who desperately, desperately needed it."

Active Me Kia Tu provides each child with $300 a year to go purely towards staying active — whether that's paying for new equipment, club fees, uniforms or other related costs.

"Poverty robs children of choice. If they don't have choice, they don't feel great, they don't feel good about themselves and all they want to do is be able to be like their friends," Glasgow added.

The fund has been a major aid for 15-year-old Tawhirimatea and his mum, Janice Tokimua , who has been able to buy new boots each season as he chases his rugby league dreams.

"It was a blessing," Tokimua told 1News.

"He was able to buy comfortable shoes, [and not worry about] that stigma of, 'oh, you ain't got no boots?'

"And for him to actually wear a comfortable shoe - it didn't have to be a label, just as long as it was comfortable."

Tawhirimatea finding his stride in those boots too, having represented Niue the past three years with hopes of one day also playing for the Niuean senior team.

"I just want to play for my village, play for Toi," he said.

"Because there's not much people out there from Toi."

In East Auckland, sisters Zharanya and Kaaveya Pulman used the fund to further their progress in karate, leading to a trip to Sydney last year for the GKR Karate World Cup.

"There was way more people than I thought it was going to be. There was like around 6000 at least," 13-year-old Kaaveya recalled.

But even with the large turnout, the pair impressed with their kata. Zharanya finishing fourth in her division while Kaaveya earned a gold medal — not bad considering it took a bit of convincing from mum to originally get them in the dojo.

"She wanted us to do a sport because, at the time, we weren't doing anything but sitting at home," Kaaveya said.

"She pulled us into karate and obviously I didn't want to do it but over time I made more friends at karate and that's why I'm still doing it."

The pair used their funds to buy new gi, along with paying for things such as classes and travel.

"It would be a lot more harder for us [without the $300]," Zharanya said."

"That's the only way to put it."

"You kind of need equipment to keep progressing," her sister added.

But that's the reality the sisters, Tawhirimatea and the other 10,000-odd young Kiwis in poverty now face with the programme forced to close due to a lack of funding.

In the first four years, around $8.5 million has been spent on the programme — a figure Sport NZ Head of Tamariki Karen Laurie said it simply can't add to moving forward.

"Unfortunately, Sport New Zealand is quite a small government agency," she said. "This was always a pilot for us, so the idea was always to try and find an additional funder, find an additional agency to work with us on this."

Laurie said Sport NZ and Variety have both been searching for a new financial backer for more than a year but have come up empty handed, leading to Active Me Kia Tu being forced to end last month.

"We're certainly really open to hearing who else might be interested in and whose outcomes this might serve because it's about young people.

"When we put these young people at the heart of it, I think there's a lot of people and a lot of agencies that this meets their outcomes."

Laurie and Glasgow said any parties interested in discussing relaunching the programme should reach out to them directly.

"You're not only helping them be physically active, you are enhancing their long-term well-being and their sense of self and their sense of purpose," Glasgow said.

"So to anybody that is considering it or might consider it love to talk to you because I truly believe in the outcomes that we have created."