IN-CONFIDENCE

Tçnâ koe Elspeth

Thank you for your Official Information Act 1982 request, received 30 November 2025.

Your request has been logged with the reference OIA0841, and you can expect to receive a response on or before 19 January 2026.

Please note the summer holiday period of 25 December 2025 -15 January 2026 has been taken into account when calculating this timeframe.

We will be in touch if we have any questions, or if we need to transfer parts of your request, or extend the time taken to answer your request.

Ngâ mihi

Sophie
Ministerial and Executive Services team
Ministry of Disabled People - Whaikaha

-----Original Message-----
From: Elspeth Baker-Vevers <[FOI #33058 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 30 November 2025 12:07 am
To: OIA_requests (WHAIKAHA) <[Ministry for Disabled People request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - 11 - ADHD recognition, policy treatment, and data visibility (2022–present)

[You don't often get email from [FOI #33058 email]. Learn why this is important at https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific... ]

Kia ora,

I’m making this Official Information Act request as part of ADHDInquiryNZ, a grassroots, unfunded, and non-partisan volunteer initiative supporting a public petition calling for a Parliamentary inquiry into systemic harm to people with ADHD in Aotearoa. This request focuses on information held by your agency to help identify how ADHD is currently recognised within existing systems. The information gathered from this and related requests will be used to help identify any patterns across agencies and will contribute to the evidence provided to the Petitions Committee when the petition period closes. I appreciate the time involved in OIA responses.

Please treat this as a request for official information under the OIA. I am requesting the specific information listed below. I understand the agency’s obligation to assist under s 13 and that a decision should be made within 20 working days of receipt (transfer within 10 working days). If any part of this request requires clarification, please let me know no later than 5 working days from receipt. If an extension under s 15A is needed, please state the reason and duration. I request release in machine-readable format where available. This request is confined to information held by your agency; please do not transfer for commentary.

This request covers the period from July 2022 (Whaikaha’s establishment) to the date this request is received.

Please provide:

1. Definition and Eligibility
Any policy, eligibility criteria, operational guidance, or internal documentation that addresses whether and how ADHD is included, recognised, or considered within disability supports administered, funded, or overseen by Whaikaha.

For clarity, this request includes ADHD-specific information and any related material that Whaikaha may categorise under broader neurodevelopmental, behavioural, learning-difficulty, or co-occurring disability groupings where relevant to ADHD recognition or service design.

This includes any information or criteria that recognise intersectional neurodivergence (for example, ADHD alongside autism, intellectual disability, learning disability, or mental health conditions) where that affects eligibility, prioritisation, or support design.

2. Advice and Consultation
Any internal advice, cross-agency briefings, correspondence, or consultation records relating to ADHD or intersectional neurodivergent cohorts (for example, ADHD alongside other learning, developmental, or mental health conditions), including engagement with:

-Mâori providers or iwi
-Pacific providers
-Rainbow+/Takatâpui communities
-Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs)
-disability advocacy NGOs
-private service providers or contractors -consumer, advocacy, or lived-experience groups

If no such engagement has occurred, please confirm this.

2A. Advisory groups of disabled people
Please provide any documents, minutes, summaries, or correspondence relating to advisory groups or panels composed of disabled people that contributed to policy, service design, consultation, or accessibility decisions relevant to ADHD.

3. Cross-Agency Role and Coordination

Any documents or correspondence describing Whaikaha’s role in:
-co-ordinating ADHD related policy,
-contributing to ADHD related service design, or -supporting cross-agency work with Health, Education, MSD, or Justice.

If Whaikaha does not hold a co-ordinating role for ADHD, please confirm this.

4. Rights and Compliance
Any assessments, reviews, or advice since 2022 relating to how ADHD is considered within Whaikaha’s responsibilities under:

-the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD); -the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990; -the Human Rights Act 1993 (disability discrimination).

Please confirm if no such assessments exist.

5. Data Visibility and Monitoring
Please provide any information, guidance, or data dictionaries your agency holds that describe how ADHD is recognised, coded, or tracked within disability, health, or social-sector datasets since July 2022.

If ADHD is grouped within a broader category (for example, neurodevelopmental, behavioural, mental health, or learning difficulty), please specify which category is used.

If any Mâori data governance or Mâori equity considerations were applied when deciding whether to collect, categorise, or monitor ADHD-related information, please provide the relevant documents.

Please also provide any analysis or data your agency holds relating to:
• Mâori, Pacific, or Rainbow+/Takatâpui disabled people with ADHD; and • intersectional neurodivergent cohorts, such as ADHD alongside other neurodevelopmental or physical disabilities.

If such information is not collected or cannot be disaggregated, please confirm this.

6. Disability Strategy Refresh
Please provide any documents, drafts, advice, consultation summaries, internal planning materials, timelines, equity analysis, or correspondence held relating to the Disability Strategy refresh and the development of the next Disability Strategy, including any material where ADHD is discussed in relation to neurodevelopmental disability or tângata whaikaha Mâori.

If the refresh has been delayed, paused, or reprioritised, please provide any documents recording these decisions.

If information is not held
The absence of information also helps clarify how ADHD is currently recognised and supported within disability systems. Please confirm where information is not held and include any documents or correspondence recording decisions not to collect or monitor ADHD related information.

Format: Where datasets are released, please provide them in machine readable format (CSV or original spreadsheet file) with accompanying data dictionaries or field definitions.

Ngâ mihi,
Elspeth Baker-Vevers

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #33058 email]

Is [Ministry for Disabled People request email] the wrong address for Official Information requests to Ministry for Disabled People? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

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This email is confidential and may contain information that is subject to legal privilege. If it is not intended for you please do not read, distribute or copy it or any attachments. Please notify the sender by return email and delete the original message and any attachments. Any views expressed in this email may be those of the individual sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of the Ministry.

hide quoted sections

IN-CONFIDENCE

Kia ora Elspeth

 

I refer to your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request of 30
November. Part 1 of your request sought:

 

          1. Definition and Eligibility

Any policy, eligibility criteria, operational guidance, or internal
documentation that addresses whether and how ADHD is included, recognised,
or considered within disability supports administered, funded, or overseen
by Whaikaha.

 

For clarity, this request includes ADHD-specific information and any
related material that Whaikaha may categorise under broader
neurodevelopmental, behavioural, learning-difficulty, or co-occurring
disability groupings where relevant to ADHD recognition or service design.

 

This includes any information or criteria that recognise intersectional
neurodivergence (for example, ADHD alongside autism, intellectual
disability, learning disability, or mental health conditions) where that
affects eligibility, prioritisation, or support design.

 

 

I am writing to let you know we have transferred this part of your request
to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD). I am conscious you asked that
your request not be transferred, however the information to which your
request relates is not held by us, but is believed to be more closely
connected with the functions of MSD. This is because, in September 2024,
the responsibility for the provision of disability support services moved
to MSD.

 

In these circumstances, we are required by section 14 of the OIA to
transfer your request.

 

You will hear further from MSD concerning that part of your request in due
course.

 

Ngâ mihi

Sophie
Ministerial and Executive Services team
Ministry of Disabled People - Whaikaha

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Elspeth Baker-Vevers
[1][FOI #33058 email]
Sent: Sunday, 30 November 2025 12:07 am
To: OIA_requests (WHAIKAHA) [2][Ministry for Disabled People request email]
Subject: Official Information request - 11 - ADHD recognition, policy
treatment, and data visibility (2022–present)

 

[You don't often get email from
[3][FOI #33058 email]. Learn why this is
important at [4]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific... ]

 

Kia ora,

 

I’m making this Official Information Act request as part of ADHDInquiryNZ,
a grassroots, unfunded, and non-partisan volunteer initiative supporting a
public petition calling for a Parliamentary inquiry into systemic harm to
people with ADHD in Aotearoa. This request focuses on information held by
your agency to help identify how ADHD is currently recognised within
existing systems. The information gathered from this and related requests
will be used to help identify any patterns across agencies and will
contribute to the evidence provided to the Petitions Committee when the
petition period closes. I appreciate the time involved in OIA responses.

 

Please treat this as a request for official information under the OIA. I
am requesting the specific information listed below. I understand the
agency’s obligation to assist under s 13 and that a decision should be
made within 20 working days of receipt (transfer within 10 working days).
If any part of this request requires clarification, please let me know no
later than 5 working days from receipt. If an extension under s 15A is
needed, please state the reason and duration. I request release in
machine-readable format where available. This request is confined to
information held by your agency; please do not transfer for commentary.

 

This request covers the period from July 2022 (Whaikaha’s establishment)
to the date this request is received.

 

Please provide:

 

1. Definition and Eligibility

Any policy, eligibility criteria, operational guidance, or internal
documentation that addresses whether and how ADHD is included, recognised,
or considered within disability supports administered, funded, or overseen
by Whaikaha.

 

For clarity, this request includes ADHD-specific information and any
related material that Whaikaha may categorise under broader
neurodevelopmental, behavioural, learning-difficulty, or co-occurring
disability groupings where relevant to ADHD recognition or service design.

 

This includes any information or criteria that recognise intersectional
neurodivergence (for example, ADHD alongside autism, intellectual
disability, learning disability, or mental health conditions) where that
affects eligibility, prioritisation, or support design.

 

2. Advice and Consultation

Any internal advice, cross-agency briefings, correspondence, or
consultation records relating to ADHD or intersectional neurodivergent
cohorts (for example, ADHD alongside other learning, developmental, or
mental health conditions), including engagement with:

 

-Mâori providers or iwi

-Pacific providers

-Rainbow+/Takatâpui communities

-Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs)

-disability advocacy NGOs

-private service providers or contractors -consumer, advocacy, or
lived-experience groups

 

If no such engagement has occurred, please confirm this.

 

2A. Advisory groups of disabled people

Please provide any documents, minutes, summaries, or correspondence
relating to advisory groups or panels composed of disabled people that
contributed to policy, service design, consultation, or accessibility
decisions relevant to ADHD.

 

3. Cross-Agency Role and Coordination

 

Any documents or correspondence describing Whaikaha’s role in:

-co-ordinating ADHD related policy,

-contributing to ADHD related service design, or -supporting cross-agency
work with Health, Education, MSD, or Justice.

 

If Whaikaha does not hold a co-ordinating role for ADHD, please confirm
this.

 

4. Rights and Compliance

Any assessments, reviews, or advice since 2022 relating to how ADHD is
considered within Whaikaha’s responsibilities under:

 

-the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD);
-the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990; -the Human Rights Act 1993
(disability discrimination).

 

Please confirm if no such assessments exist.

 

5. Data Visibility and Monitoring

Please provide any information, guidance, or data dictionaries your agency
holds that describe how ADHD is recognised, coded, or tracked within
disability, health, or social-sector datasets since July 2022.

 

If ADHD is grouped within a broader category (for example,
neurodevelopmental, behavioural, mental health, or learning difficulty),
please specify which category is used.

 

If any Mâori data governance or Mâori equity considerations were applied
when deciding whether to collect, categorise, or monitor ADHD-related
information, please provide the relevant documents.

 

Please also provide any analysis or data your agency holds relating to:

• Mâori, Pacific, or Rainbow+/Takatâpui disabled people with ADHD; and  •
intersectional neurodivergent cohorts, such as ADHD alongside other
neurodevelopmental or physical disabilities.

 

If such information is not collected or cannot be disaggregated, please
confirm this.

 

6. Disability Strategy Refresh

Please provide any documents, drafts, advice, consultation summaries,
internal planning materials, timelines, equity analysis, or correspondence
held relating to the Disability Strategy refresh and the development of
the next Disability Strategy, including any material where ADHD is
discussed in relation to neurodevelopmental disability or tângata whaikaha
Mâori.

 

If the refresh has been delayed, paused, or reprioritised, please provide
any documents recording these decisions.

 

If information is not held

The absence of information also helps clarify how ADHD is currently
recognised and supported within disability systems. Please confirm where
information is not held and include any documents or correspondence
recording decisions not to collect or monitor ADHD related information.

 

Format: Where datasets are released, please provide them in machine
readable format (CSV or original spreadsheet file) with accompanying data
dictionaries or field definitions.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Elspeth Baker-Vevers

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

 

This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

 

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:

[5][FOI #33058 email]

 

Is [6][Ministry for Disabled People request email] the wrong address for Official
Information requests to Ministry for Disabled People? If so, please
contact us using this form:

[7]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:

[8]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

 

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.

 

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

This email is confidential and may contain information that is subject to
legal privilege. If it is not intended for you please do not read,
distribute or copy it or any attachments. Please notify the sender by
return email and delete the original message and any attachments. Any
views expressed in this email may be those of the individual sender and
may not necessarily reflect the views of the Ministry.

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