Purpose of Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People
The purpose of Whaikaha is to
- improve the way disability support is provided
- make changes in society and communities to make things better for:
- tāngata whaikaha Māori and disabled people
- their whānau and families.
Role
Whaikaha’s role is to lead and coordinate cross-government strategic policy. This means that whenever a government agency is writing policy which will impact all New Zealanders, that the rights and needs of the Disability community is taken into account.
Whaikaha does not provide direct support to disabled people or their families. For more information about services and support available, visit Disability Support Services.
Organisation and Values
The Ministry is arranged into four business groups
- Commissioning Design and Delivery and Policy
- Strategy and Partnerships
- People and Culture
- Corporate Services.
Each business group is led by a Deputy Chief Executive (DCE) who is a member of the Executive Leadership team. The Executive Leadership team also includes a Kaihautū – Chief Advisor Māori who provides strategic advice and leads parts of their integrated work programme to ensure a commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi is reflected. The Ministry has progressively built organisational capability and capacity to deliver on their obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The Ministry offices are located in Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.
The Ministry is a flexible-by-default employer and is committed to supporting the provision of flexible working arrangements to reflect the diverse needs of their kaimahi/staff.
To find out more about current work programmes please visit their website.
Brief History
Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People was established as a new Ministry on 1 July 2022 with a dual mandate to:
- Improve and strengthen the way disability supports are provided.
- Advance societal change to improve outcomes for disabled people, tāngata whaikaha Māori, families and whānau.
Upon establishment, the Disability Support Services functions and associated staff, including Mana Whaikaha and Enabling Good Lives Christchurch, transferred from the Ministry of Health. The Office of Disability Issues and Enabling Good Lives Waikato transferred from MSD. The remit of Whaikaha waas to lead transformation change, including:
- wider leadership and stewardship of disability issues across government to improve the experience and outcomes of disabled people, tangata whaikaha Māori and whānau
- transformation of the disability support system (enable disabled person-directed support and the application of EGL principles).
In 2024, the Minister for Disability Issues Hon Louise Upston commissioned an Independent Review of the Disability Support System to strengthen its long-term sustainability. This led to changes that placed Disability Support Services back into the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) as a business unit and Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People became a standalone government department on 1 December 2024. It still operates as a dedicated ministry for the disability strategy, policy and advocacy.