Thousands of women queuing for help from Auckland City Mission

Monday, 18 December 2017

Auckland City Mission have already helped thousands of Aucklanders in the two weeks leading to Christmas.

The Auckland City Mission will have helped around 4000 people with emergency food parcels and Christmas gifts by the end of this week, and over 80 per cent of the people they help will be women.

As Christmas approaches people queue for several hours outside the Hobson Street drop-in centre in the city centre for assistance.

City Missioner Chris Farrelly said women carried the burden of poverty in New Zealand and made huge sacrifices for children.

'Many of the people who have come to the City Mission this Christmas are women bringing up their children, and other people's children, on their own.'

](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/94574822/auckland-city-mission-maxed-out-unable-to-help-growing-numbers-of-needy-nzers)* Auckland City Mission's $1.3m Christmas shortfall**

Auckland mother Margaret had turned to the charity for help three times in the past few years. She said she had three children at home and worked in a school tuck shop.

When the school year ended it meant there was no work for her.

'I still have to pay for daycare for my two-year-old even though I don't have work, because I don't want my daughter to lose her place.'

Margaret said she put all her money toward paying the daycare bill.

'I don't want the daycare to think I'm taking advantage of them by not paying. But now I don't have any money for presents for the kids or food.'

Helen Robinson, the City Mission's General Manager, Social Services said there was a perception people's household food budget or supply was inadequate or that they were not planning well.

'This isn't the case – the reason people are queueing is because there is not enough income to cover the cost of food. They can't afford to buy the appropriate quality of food that they and their children need.'

Robinson said the food that the women they helped could get access to was of inadequate quality.

'The anxiety this creates because of the inadequacy is incredibly high.'

In the week leading up to Christmas the Mission expected to help about 1300 people and would need more donations to help provide for them.

Currently the Mission had raised only a third of its $1.3 million appeal target, and was urging all Aucklanders to donate just a few dollars each to help a fellow Aucklander this Christmas.