Support For Grandparents Stepping Up in Difficult Times

Taking on the full-time care of grandchildren can be life-changing – filled with love but also unexpected challenges. Our partner charity, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, provides a vital support network for those who step up in difficult times. From emergency help to lifelong friendships, these groups offer connection, guidance, and a sense of belonging. Here is how they are making a difference for grandparents and the tamariki in their care.

For many members, the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Group network is a lifeline. It provides connection and support during tough times. Many grandparents take on the care of their grandchildren with little warning, often in moments of crisis. Some children arrive with nothing but the clothes they are wearing. Grandparents can feel isolated from friends and family as they step into a parenting role at a time when their peers are slowing down and enjoying retirement. The support groups create a safe and welcoming space where members can share challenges, swap advice, and problem-solve together.

GRG has 37 support groups across Aotearoa, all led by volunteers who give their time, energy, and aroha to support their members. The funding GRG receives helps these groups come together in different ways, not just for grandparents but also for their tamariki and rangatahi. Support Group Coordinators often become trusted advocates, offering a listening ear, finding furniture or other essentials for children, or standing alongside members at meetings with WINZ or the family courts. Sometimes they are the only ones available to care for mokopuna when a grandparent needs to get to a doctor’s appointment.

One member shared how they felt helpless and alone after months of stressful incidents with their high-needs grandchild. Eventually, they were referred to Grandparents Raising Grandchildren.

"I then attended my first GRG meeting, feeling like a desolate failure, thinking I would have to let the child go into a residential home in Auckland or Christchurch."

Three years later, that same member reflected on the difference GRG had made.

"The moral support from the GRG bi-weekly meetings and the pastoral support at times when the child would not cooperate meant I could go to appointments, like the doctor or my son’s funeral. The support when I needed someone to go with me, the GRG outings, some for family, some for carers. All provide a social aspect that is cut out of our lives when we take on the care of a grandchild. We lose our own peers but form wonderful new ones who are going through the same as us."

Support groups also organise events that help members connect with the wider community. Sometimes, that means joining a local parade and celebrating together. These gatherings remind grandparents and their families that they are not alone. They are part of something bigger.

The Motueka group recently took 10 grandparents and 15 grandchildren on a West Coast adventure. The trip was a huge success.

"Seeing all the grandchildren bonding so well was amazing. Because of this trip, our group now meets every third Friday of the month at the Motueka Community House for an evening of food, fun, and games with our grandchildren and extended whānau."

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Words supplied by Grandparents Raising Grandchildren.

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