Department of Social Welfare established

Child Welfare Division joined with the Social Security Department in a ‘forced marriage’ to become the Department of Social Welfare.^[i]

A 1972 report, New Zealand’s first comprehensive inquiry into child abuse, indicated there was relatively little child abuse in NZ communities. However, it signalled that out of reported abuse cases, Māori and Pasifika figures had been relatively higher from the late 1960s. For example, it was reported that in 1967 the  incidence of abuse among Māori children was 6 times that of Pākehā children and 9 times higher for Pasifika children.^[ii]