Growing Up in New Zealand provides important information about what it’s like to be a child growing up in the complex world of 21st Century New Zealand.

The data gathered from more than 6,000 young people and their whānau as part of this longitudinal study offers insights into the lives of children, young people and their families in the following areas:

• Health and wellbeing
• Psychosocial and cognitive development
• Education
• Family/whānau
• Culture and identity
• Societal context and neighbourhood environment

The data is valuable because of the study's diverse cohort, its longitudinal nature, its linkage with routinely collected Government data, and the strengths-based focus.

Ways to access the data

We’re keen to see the Growing Up in New Zealand data sets used as widely as possible for research providing evidence which can improve the wellbeing of New Zealand children.

If you work in research, policy development, service delivery, with a Government department, NGO or community group, the Growing Up in New Zealand data sets could provide valuable insights to benefit your work.

You can access the data in any of the following ways:

• Commission a tailored or bespoke report

Use the expertise of the Growing Up in New Zealand team at the University of Auckland. This is suitable for organisations who want to explore a specific topic or area of research.

The team provides guidance on which data will best meet your specific goal and provides a full-service data analysis; and co-authoring of the report along with optional layout and printing services.

Contact our Data Access Coordinator if you’re interested in commissioning a research project with the Growing Up in New Zealand team.

• Request access to the anonymised data set for independent research

Researchers from all over the world can access the anonymised data sets to answer a raft of research questions. Growing Up in New Zealand provides support to use the data via videos, data dictionaries and user guides.

Find out more about applying to access Growing Up in New Zealand data here.

• Collaborate with the Growing Up in New Zealand team on a project

You can work together with the Growing Up in New Zealand team on a research project.  This allows you to make the most of the team's expertise to pursue your research objectives.  It's also a good option for international researchers wanting to use the data or to carry out cross country comparisons.

Get in touch with our research team to discuss the options.

Apply for a Children and Families Research Fund Grant

Every year the Ministry for Social Development awards up to $750,000 for social policy relevant research using the Growing Up in New Zealand data sets.

Find out more about the Children and Families Research Fund here.

Anyone who wants to access Growing Up in New Zealand data needs to follow Growing Up in New Zealand’s data access protocols.

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