About Growing Up data

About Growing Up in New Zealand data

Growing Up in New Zealand is a rich longitudinal data resource on child and youth development.

The study has followed thousands of children and their families from before birth, collecting information at key stages of life from pregnancy and early childhood through to adolescence. This provides a rich picture of what it is like to grow up in Aotearoa today, and how children’s experiences, environments, relationships and circumstances shape their wellbeing over time.

Growing Up in New Zealand data are used by researchers, government agencies and policy analysts to better understand the lives of young people and their whānau, and to inform policy, services and public discussion.

Strengths of Growing Up in New Zealand data

Growing Up in New Zealand is a nationally significant data resource. Depending on which data set is used, the strengths can include:

Longitudinal insightThe study follows the same cohort over time, allowing researchers to examine change, development, transitions and longer-term outcomes from before birth through to adolescence.
Breadth and depthThe data covers a wide range of areas, including health, education, family and whānau life, culture, identity, housing, neighborhoods, social connections, mental wellbeing and life beyond school.
Multiple perspectivesInformation has been collected from children and young people, mothers, partners, caregivers, teachers and other sources at different stages of the study.
A contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand focusThe study reflects the experiences of young people and families growing up in New Zealand today, across diverse cultural, social and economic contexts.
Policy and research valueThe data supports research, policy development, service design and decision-making across many areas of child, youth and whānau wellbeing.

Growing Up in New Zealand data sets

Growing Up in New Zealand data is held securely by two organisations:

University of Auckland – comprises the full cohort and all data collected by the study.
Stats NZ – comprises a sub-cohort who have consented for most of their data to be shared with StatsNZ for linkage in the IDI. This data set will be available from 1 June 2026.

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:

1. 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.

All access to Growing Up in New Zealand data is controlled by a Data Access Protocol and all requests are reviewed by a Data Access Committee.

Find out more about applying to access Growing Up in New Zealand data here.
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2. 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.