Raising Children in New Zealand: Patterns of Family Formation and Change in New Zealand. Over the past 50 years, there have been major changes across the developed world in the fundamental processes that shape families ? the formation, dissolution and reconstitution of adult unions, and the patterns of childbearing that occur within and outside these unions. This report provides a detailed account of how these changes have occurred in New Zealand, drawing on data from the 1995 survey New Zealand Women: Family, Education and Employment.

By Ministry of Social Development, New Zealand.

Family and Children Policy Resource.

Whole Child Approach: A guide to applying the whole child approach. The whole child approach is designed to ensure that the development of policy and services takes account of the needs and rights of children. This is achieved by requiring, where possible, that the views of children are incorporated into policy-making and service development and that policies and services contribute to the healthy development and wellbeing of all children. The guide has three main parts. Part one provides practical information on how to apply the whole child approach. Part two provides a rationale for the whole child approach by summarising and discussing the concepts that underpin it. Part three provides examples of how the whole child approach is being applied both nationally and internationally.

By Ministry of Social Development, New Zealand.

Family and Children Policy Resource.

Stepfamilies and Resilience: Final Report. This report describes a study of stepfamilies in which the perspectives on relationships and wellbeing in stepfamilies were obtained from children, parents, stepparents, non-resident parents and teachers. The main aim was to examine and understand the impact of the quality of relationships on factors representing resilience in these families. It is concluded that the affective quality of relationships in stepfamilies is an important correlate of positive family and child functioning. In particular, attention needs to be paid to the child-stepparent relationship in fostering resilience in stepfamilies. It was also found that the perspectives of children are central to assessing wellbeing at the family and individual level. By Jan Pryor.

By Ministry of Social Development, New Zealand.

Family and Children Policy Resource.

"Not just court: family violence in rural NSW - Aboriginal women speak out" a new research report completed by Elizabeth Moore is available online. This project emerged in response to issues raised by Aboriginal women in rural towns of New South Wales, who contributed to focus group consultations in which individual and professional users of the New South Wales Chamber Magistrate and other Local Court services described their experience of using those services..

By Centre for Rural Social Research, Australia.

Family and Children Policy Resource.