Evidence gathered from the Growing Up in New Zealand study features in a just-released report looking at how childhood inequalities affect life outcomes.

The report, The impact of inequalities in the early years on outcomes over the life course, follows a symposium at the Scottish Parliament earlier this year of international academics and policy makers. It details some of the most up-to-date international literature on early inequalities in
childhood and identifies key priorities for policy makers and practitioners.

Growing Up in New Zealand’s principal investigator, Professor Susan Morton, says this study shows that inequalities in developmental opportunities and outcomes have their origins in early in life and that risk factors for early vulnerability cluster.

“Our findings demonstrate that Māori and Pasifika children experience the highest burden of socioeconomic disadvantage in their early years as well as an unequal burden of significant co-morbidities in terms of health and development throughout their life course,” she says.

You can read Professor Morton’s contribution to the Impact of Inequalities report below and you can access the full report here.