Frequently Asked Questions

Offers of redress will be tailored to each individual Applicant and could include access to confidential counselling and psychological services; or an upfront payment for future therapy needs, a direct personal response from Dilworth, including an apology; a redress payment; and other forms of redress which may be requested by the Applicant. The Dilworth Trust Board will have no control or influence over the independent Panellists and will be bound by their decisions on the financial redress to be provided to each former student.

Yes, if this is the wish of the Applicant (or the family of a former student who has died). Direct personal apologies in a form, on terms, and at a venue agreed with the Applicant and written letters of apology can be arranged at the preference of the Applicant.

Applicants (or estates of eligible former students who have died) can accept the Offer of Redress or choose to not do so. Even if they have accepted an Offer of Redress from the Dilworth Redress Programme, they can also apply for a claim through the Government’s puretumu torowhānui redress scheme that may be introduced as recommended in the He Purapura Ora, he Māra Tipu report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.

The Government has stated that it will be establishing at some point its puretumu torowhānui redress scheme. We encourage eligible former students to participate in one or both redress programmes based on what feels most appropriate for them.

If an Applicant accepts the Offer of Redress it will be in full and final settlement of all claims he may have against the Dilworth Trust Board for the abuse.

The Dilworth Independent Redress Panel may offer financial and other redress to Applicants  on a personalised, fair and equitable basis. It is proposed that in any one case, up to NZ$200,000 be available to the Redress Panel from which they may award financial redress to an applicant. In cases that the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel believes are exceptional when compared with other cases, it is able to award a figure for financial redress of up to NZ$300,000.

The Dilworth Redress Programme Terms outline that the level of any financial redress would be at the discretion of the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel. In determining the amount of financial redress, they will have regard to:

• the nature of the abuse;
• the extent of the abuse;
• the impact of the abuse on the Applicant, including the immediate, short- and long-term physical, psychological, emotional, social relational and financial impacts, whether direct or indirect;
• the individual vulnerability of the Applicant;
• the degree of failure on the part of Dilworth in its care and protection of the Applicant including the failure to protect the Applicant from a known or suspected abuser;
• any aggravating features relating to the abuse or Dilworth’s response to the abuse, for example whether Dilworth silenced or punished the Applicant when they complained of the abuse; and
• the integrity of the Dilworth Redress Programme (like cases being treated alike, and more serious cases receiving greater awards).

The Dilworth Redress Programme is designed to be fair, balanced, and responsive to the needs of applicants during their participation in the process. The standard of proof required for the Dilworth Redress Programme shall be that of a “reasonable likelihood”. The starting position for the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel when considering an Application for redress is (as stated in the Terms) that “Survivors should be believed unless there is compelling evidence to the contrary.”

An Applicant will need to provide some form of identification such as a passport or a driver’s licence when making a statutory declaration to support their application. This is an essential step to ensure the interests of the Applicant are protected, and respected, as well as maintaining the integrity of the Dilworth Redress Programme.

For Applicants who are located outside of New Zealand, a certified copy of their identity will be required.

If an Applicant decides to proceed with the Offer, it will then be incorporated by the Dilworth Trust Board’s lawyers into a full and final Settlement Agreement. Before signing the Settlement Agreement, the Applicant must take independent legal advice. The cost of this independent legal advice will be covered by the Redress Programme up to a set amount.

The key components of the Settlement Agreement are:

• It will set out in detail the redress as offered in the award issued by the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel and the details required to give effect to it; 
• If the Applicant accepts redress it will be in full and final settlement of all claims relating to the abuse he may have against the Dilworth Trust Board.

A sample Settlement Agreement can be requested from the Administrator at any time.  

After the Settlement Agreement has been signed, the redress award will be implemented.  This will depend on what types of redress has been awarded.  It could include the former student applicant receiving a redress payment, a separate amount for future therapy needs or on-going therapy referred through the Listening Service, and an apology. 

Yes they do. Applicants for redress are entitled to meet with the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel in what are called "Face-to-Face" meetings (contact your Redress Facilitator to facilitate this). Please note:

• These meetings are entirely optional for Applicants; 
• Meeting with the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel will not provide any advantage in terms of the redress offered, including the amount of financial redress; 
• Not meeting with the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel will not result in any disadvantage to those applicants who elect not to meet with the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel; 
• The Dilworth Independent Redress Panel will determine the redress offered, including the amount of financial redress, on the basis of the information provided by applicants in their written Redress Applications. 

Therefore, it is important that applicants provide all relevant information in their written Redress Applications.

Redress payments will not be subject to New Zealand tax. For further information, please refer advice provided by Chapman Tripp and letter from New Zealand IRD. We strongly encourage applicants to obtain their own independent financial and tax advice.

Read what the Ministry of Social Development has written: Click here to download

The Dilworth Redress Programme is available to any former Dilworth students who have suffered sexual abuse or serious physical abuse committed by a Dilworth representative, as well as ‘survivors’ of sexual abuse committed by another student where a Dilworth representative failed to take reasonable steps to protect against the potential for that abuse, or where the sexual abuse was encouraged or permitted by a Dilworth representative. 

Estates of former students (now deceased) where those former students have suffered abuse, can also make an Application for Redress. However, a family member of a deceased former student cannot make an Application for Redress to the Dilworth Redress Programme for the harm they have personally suffered as a result of the abuse the former student experienced. (See answer below for details).

The Terms were expanded after feedback from former students who had suffered abuse, those affected by abuse, the wider Dilworth community, and legal representatives of former students who had suffered abuse.. There was a clear view that the scope should be expanded to include students who were sexually abused by other students while at Dilworth, and the School had knowledge or did not take reasonable steps to prevent the abuse.

Considering the definition of ‘serious physical abuse’ will be a matter for the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel to assess, taking account of the experience of applicants and the impact the physical abuse has had on an applicant.

In the case of a former student (who had suffered abuse) who has died, the legal representative of their estate can make a claim for redress. The application process will be similar to that for other persons making applications and the legal representative of the estate will be assisted by the Redress Facilitators to complete their Application.

A family member is not eligible for financial redress but an estate can make a claim.

If an eligible former student is incapacitated, a family member or friend can make an Application for Redress on their behalf. An Enduring Power of Attorney is required. Further information can be sought from the Dilworth Redress Programme Administrator on 0800 888 744 (Monday-Friday 9am-5pm) or [email protected]

Please refer to the Legal advice for Applicants section below.

If the Applicant has engaged in the Dilworth Independent Inquiry, he will be entitled to have access to, and contact with, the same support person for both the Dilworth Independent Inquiry and Dilworth Redress Programme.

If an Applicant needs to travel to meet with the Redress Facilitator, to present to the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel or to receive an apology from Dilworth, reasonable travel costs for the Applicant  and a support person will be covered by the Dilworth Redress Programme.

No. These costs will not be taken into account by the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel and will not be deducted from a redress payment. They will not affect the Applicant’s ability to access support services to assist them in engaging with the Dilworth Redress Programme.

The Redress Panel is conscious the impact of timing of determinations has on applicants to the Redress Programme.

To address this situation, the Panel is issuing Interim Awards of NZ$10,000 on account of an applicant’s final determination, should he wish to receive an interim payment, and the following steps have been met:

1. He has completed his application form and Statutory Declaration;
2. He has a full report written about his case by his Redress Facilitator;
3. He has his application lodged with the Panel by his Redress Facilitator; and
4. The Panel has determined the applicant meets the eligibility requirements for redress under the Terms of Reference for the Redress Programme,

For more information, please speak with your Redress Facilitator.

No. Throughout the redress process, the Applicant would not need to have any dealings with Dilworth unless they wished to, such as receiving an apology in person from Dilworth as part of the terms of any redress agreement awarded by the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel.

Unless an Applicant wishes to present to the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel members, he will not need to have any contact with them.

This is not required for applications to the programme. However, in some circumstances, an independent psychological assessment may be requested by the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel as part of their decision-making process.

The Dilworth Independent Redress Panel is committed to making fair and equitable decisions and is faced with not only the largest but the first substantial redress programme in New Zealand. It has stated it will commence making determinations in the first quarter of 2024. The Redress Panel is entirely independent of Dilworth School and Dilworth Trust Board.

The process is reliant on the speed of progress through the various Registration and then Decision Processes steps. Each application is unique. Some are complex and require many documents that can take additional time to procure. The Redress Facilitators will explain the process to you and keep you apprised of progress and timeframes.

Applications may be made by eligible applicants relating to abuse that took place at any point in time when they were a student at Dilworth.

There is no set term for the Dilworth Redress Programme, although after an initial term of three years the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel would have discretion to bring the Dilworth Redress Programme to an end.

When the Government establishes its puretumu torowhānui redress programme, Dilworth may be required to include the Dilworth Redress Programme in the Government scheme. If this is the case, the Dilworth Redress Programme will provide the maximum possible notice to allow former students who were abused to apply to the Dilworth Redress Programme before it is required to end. All existing claims will continue to be processed where possible.

While registering for the Dilworth Redress Programme does not create any obligations for you, nor does it compromise any of your rights, you may wish to seek legal advice on registration. If you do so, reasonable legal costs up to NZ$1,000 plus GST will be funded. (For full information see section SUPPORT FOR LEGAL COSTS under Help and Support button.)

Yes, if you consider you need legal advice at this stage, the Dilworth Redress Programme will pay for reasonable legal costs up to a maximum amount of NZ$1,000 (plus GST).  You will need to ask the lawyer to send their invoice or bill to [email protected].

If your legal costs at this stage exceed NZ$1,000 (plus GST), you will need to pay any legal costs above the Dilworth Redress Programme contribution of NZ$1,000 (plus GST).

We do not expect you will need to seek legal advice prior to submitting your Application to the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel.  This is because the Dilworth Independent Redress Panel’s offer is not binding on you – you will be free to accept or reject it – and this is a consultative rather than litigious process. 

However, we recognise that in some situations, you may wish to seek legal advice at this stage.  The Dilworth Redress Programme will support you if you want legal advice at this time.

For full information see section SUPPORT FOR LEGAL COSTS under Help and Support button.

Yes, if you consider you need legal advice at this stage, the Dilworth Redress Programme will pay your reasonable legal costs.  We do not expect the cost of receiving legal advice at this stage should exceed NZ$2,000 (plus GST).  You will need to ask the lawyer to send their invoice or bill to [email protected].

If your legal costs at this stage exceed NZ$2,000 (plus GST), you will need to pay any legal costs above the Dilworth Redress Programme contribution of NZ$2,000 (plus GST).

Yes, you must receive independent legal advice prior to signing the Statutory Declaration and Settlement Agreement.  This is a condition of the Dilworth Redress Programme. 

Yes, the Dilworth Redress Programme will pay your reasonable legal costs (up to a set limit) to enable you to have independent legal advice when deciding whether to accept or reject your Settlement Agreement.  We do not expect the cost of receiving legal advice at this stage and completing the Statutory Declaration and Settlement Agreement should exceed NZ$3,500 (plus GST).  You will need to ask the lawyer to send their invoice or bill to [email protected].

If your legal costs at this stage exceed NZ$3,500 (plus GST), you will need to pay any legal costs above the Dilworth Redress Programme contribution of NZ$3,500 (plus GST).

No legal advice is required if you do not wish to accept a Redress Offer. 

Yes, the Dilworth Redress Programme will pay your reasonable legal costs to enable you to have independent legal advice when deciding whether to accept or reject your Settlement Agreement.  We do not expect the cost of receiving legal advice at this stage should exceed NZ$3,500 (plus GST).  You will need to ask the lawyer to send their invoice or bill to [email protected].

If your legal costs at this stage exceed NZ$3,500 (plus GST), you will need to pay any legal costs above the Dilworth Redress Programme contribution of NZ$3,500 (plus GST).

You are free to seek legal advice from any independent lawyer in New Zealand or in your country of residence – other than lawyers who act for Dilworth.  If you are already receiving legal advice relating to abuse at Dilworth, you can continue to use your current lawyer.

We are aware that the following lawyers have provided advice to other Dilworth former students who suffered abuse and have experience dealing with historical abuse cases.  Inclusion of these names is not a recommendation. 

Shine Lawyers
Offices in Auckland and Christchurch
www.shinelawyers.co.nz
0800 Shine Law

Cooper Legal
Offices in Wellington
www.sonjacooperlaw.co.nz
04 499 9025

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care has also previously published a list of lawyers in New Zealand who are assisting ‘survivors’ to participate in the Royal Commission. You could ask the commission for that list.

For further information on legal advice, please contact your Redress Facilitator, or the Administrator on [email protected] or 0800 888 744.

No - members of the Dilworth Trust Board will not know the identity of any applicants for redress. However, it is necessary to disclose some personal identifiers about an applicant (such as name, years of attendance at School and age) to Dilworth School in order to facilitate the request for information related to the Application for Redress (but we will never disclose other information about an application in this way).

The Dilworth Trust Board will be notified when an Applicant receives a Redress Offer.

We will use personal information only for the purposes of considering an Application for Redress and managing our processes. This will include using the information in the following ways: 

• Assisting an Applicant to make an Application for Redress 
• Determining an Application and implementing Redress Offers that have been accepted by Applicants. 
• Assisting Applicants with any support services they require during the process, including legal costs, counselling, or other support. 
• Managing the safety and wellbeing of all participants during the Dilworth Redress Programme process. 

We take all reasonable steps to protect the personal information we hold.

Wherever possible, the Dilworth Redress Programme will collect personal information about a person from that person. For example, we will collect a large amount of the personal information we need directly from an applicant in their application or during interviews with Redress Facilitators. However, in some cases, it will not be possible for us to collect personal information directly from the individuals concerned, such as when we need to collect personal information that the individual concerned does not hold.

We must collect a copy of an Applicant’s school file from Dilworth School. However, we will only collect personal information from other sources – such as lawyers, healthcare providers, the Dilworth Independent Inquiry, the Police, or the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care, with the individual’s consent.

The Dilworth Redress Programme will retain personal information only for as long as we have a lawful purpose to use it. Initially, we will retain the information for the duration of the Dilworth Redress Programme plus an additional six years to manage any matters associated with an Application for Redress, such as to assist applicants to make separate applications to government redress programmes in the future. After this time, we will reassess the situation, working with applicants to understand their needs and expectations in relation to this important information.

We want to ensure that applicants do not have to provide their information to the Dilworth Redress Programme if they have already provided it to the Dilworth Independent Inquiry. We wish to minimise the potential for stress and trauma. We will only collect this information from the Dilworth Independent Inquiry if you give written consent for us to do so. Likewise, if you wish, you can also give us consent to provide your information to the Dilworth Independent Inquiry.