Rising living costs are placing unprecedented pressure on families

“We are getting more kids coming to us at the end of the day to see if there are sandwiches that are still there to take home,” Claire says. 

“They will ask if they can take some home for their sister. That has never ever happened before until this year.” 

Beach Haven School runs a breakfast club each morning, prepares daily sandwiches for students who need extra food, and relies heavily on KidsCan supplies including bread, snacks and practical essentials to help ensure children can arrive at school fed and ready to learn. 

But demand is growing, with the school currently going through around five loaves of bread a day. The beginning of each week often brings the greatest pressure, as families stretch already limited budgets while waiting for payday. 

“Mondays and Tuesdays are busy,” Claire says. 

“People are waiting for payday of some description. But we said just send them to school, we will feed them. They won’t have anything to eat at home, but they will here.” 

Principal Stephanie Thompson says attendance itself is increasingly being shaped by poverty, and the growing pressure is no longer limited to the most vulnerable families. 

“I’ve had parents who live further away and would say we can’t come to school today. We can’t make it. But you know they don’t have petrol,” she says. 

“When you have a middle-income family and they are finding things tough, you know those whānau who were already at the other end are really struggling.”  

For Beach Haven School, support is about far more than food alone – it is about removing barriers to attendance, learning, and dignity. 

“Not having kai in your home shouldn’t be a reason not to come to school,” Stephanie says. 

“We don’t want any child feeling whakama about not having anything to eat.” 

As winter approaches and hardship deepens, Beach Haven School is seeing firsthand how more families than ever are being pushed beyond their limits.  

“I’ve never seen it this bad.”