This page offers information for survivors of abuse in State care. It includes general advice on how to lodge claims for historical abuse, obtain personal records or report concerns.
Advice to obtain personal records, access the Survivor Experiences Service and about our ways of working with you is also available. See our Alternate formats page.
This information is about support available from a range of government agencies. It is does not include support options provided by the Royal Commission directly. For more information on these options, visit the Royal Commission’s website(external link).
You can make a claim of abuse or neglect if you:
For more information, including how you can start the claims process, please go to the Ministry of Social Development, Historic Claims web page.(external link)
If you believe you were abused or neglected at a residential special school run by the Department of Education before 1989, you can make a historic claim with the Ministry of Education.
If you believe you were abused or neglected at a former psychiatric institution, you can make a historic claim with the Ministry of Health.
For more information, please contact the Ministry of Health Historic Abuse Resolution Service.(external link)
Read our how to request records guide to find out how to obtain copies of government agencies records.
Our agencies' records list will help you identify which agency (or agencies) you need to get in touch with to request them. You will need to contact each agency who holds your records directly.
When asking for information, be specific about what you are looking for – for example, dates spent in care in a particular place. This will help an agency find other agencies that may hold information about you.
You may need to ask more than one government agency for your records. This is because information may be held by more than one agency.
You can expect to:
Be aware, not all government records are available. Some may be missing or incomplete.
Sometimes agencies you have dealt with may have patchy records. This can be because records:
Personal information about other people may be blanked out from your records.
If you are asking for information about someone else (such as member of your whānau), you will have to meet extra requirements. The agency will discuss these requirements with you, since different laws may apply.
You have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information government agencies hold about you. The Privacy Act 1993 is the main law that sets out your rights to your information.
If you have any concerns about a government agency’s response to your request, you can complain:
These services are available if you have concerns about someone’s current care or situation:
This waiver of confidentiality applies to sharing information about your settlement agreement with the Royal Commission.
Crown Confidentiality Waiver [DOCX, 27 KB]
