157,000 Kiwi kids are living in material hardship.

Can you help by giving monthly?

Thousands of kids arrive in class too cold or hungry to focus. A regular donation helps us keep children in hardship warm and well fed, so they can learn – and create better futures for themselves.

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The need for food, shoes and jackets remains high.

1 in 7 Kiwi kids are living in material hardship.

Material hardship means going without the essentials – such as two good pairs of shoes, regular fruit and vegetables, and a warm jacket.

Many of these children face food insecurity
, where they have limited access to nutritious food. This is a major factor in material hardship, and the most recent figures show food insecurity has reached the highest levels in more than a decade.*

*The Salvation Army (2025). Ending food insecurity: What needs to be done now. The Salvation Army Social Policy and Parliamentary Unit. 

Walking beside Kiwi kids living in material hardship.

Every child deserves to be warm and dry – but many still need our support to experience this. With your help, we’ve already provided over 38,000 pairs of shoes and 58,000 jackets to kids across New Zealand this year, but the need remains high. 

To shine a light on material hardship, KidsCan has given Boy Walking, Auckland’s iconic Potters Park sculpture, a giant jacket and shoes - highlighting the scale of the issue. The 5.6m-high sculpture will be dressed for three weeks in a specially-made oversized jacket. 

Thanks to Droga, our incredible creative agency for conceptualising and backing this piece; and to Supreme, for creating the jacket and shoes to bring this powerful piece to life – we couldn’t have done it without them both.

Seeing material hardship up close, and KidsCan’s impact.

Sandy Stirling is the principal of Don Buck Primary School, which began receiving KidsCan support in early 2025. Sandy sees the impact of material hardship every day, and the difference KidsCan support has made. 

Your donation gives children the essentials

so they are ready to learn.

Full bellies.

Your donation means nutritious food.

Warmth.

Your donation means cozy, waterproof jackets.

Comfort.

Your donations means shoes, socks and basic health items.

Do you have any questions?

Where does your money go?
How do you support schools?
How do you support early childhood education centres?
How do you ensure your support reaches the children who need it most?​

The power of a regular gift

Why monthly donations mean so much more.

Daily impact.

A monthly donation offers stability and continuity to kids in need. With you alongside us, we can keep children fed, clothed and healthy for as long as they need us.

A solid foundation.

A monthly donation helps us to plan, evolve and expand our programmes. Your support is the rock on which we can build.

Reduced costs, greater impact.

A monthly donation helps us do more for less – so more of your money goes to our work on the ground in schools and preschools.

Donate today and give Kiwi kids the essentials they deserve.

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