Child poverty in New Zealand is bad and getting worse.

That's the conclusion of the fourth annual report prepared by the Child Poverty Monitor partnership – the JR Mckenzie Trust, the Office of the Children's Commissioner and the New Zealand Child and Youth Epidemiology Service.

And we should be ashamed both as a country and individuals says Tauranga's Peter Malcolm, spokesman for the income equality group Closing the Gap.

The lobbyist has been joined in his concerns for children by Children's Commissioner Andrew Beecroft.

He is 'deeply surprised and shaken” by the report and will ask new Prime Minister Bill English to set a poverty reduction target, a request rejected by former prime minister John Key.

Key points of the 2016 report says 155,000 children, or 14 per cent of all children are living in material hardship, without seven or more items from a list of 17 that are considered necessary for their wellbeing.

Another 85,000 children are experiencing even worse material hardship with households missing out on nine or more items from the list of 17. The items are the new measure for child poverty following its introduction to government reporting last year.

Twenty eight per cent of children live in low income homes. That means 295,000 New Zealand children are in homes where money is tight and are considered to be in income poverty.

More than 8 per cent of children are in severe poverty. That means 90,000 New Zealand children are experiencing both material hardship and living in a low income household. In 1982 the percentage of children in families experiencing income poverty was 14 per cent, compared to 28 per cent now.

'This is appalling” says Peter. 'And our Government seems to be still 'sitting on its hands”

Child poverty has been identified by New Zealanders in recent opinion polls as one of the most significant issues facing our country. While New Zealand's economy continues to grow and prosper, the 2016 Child Poverty Monitor shows there has been no real improvement in child poverty rates.

Peter Malcom says the solution is very simple.

'Decent, affordable, warm, dry housing for all. Think Government supplied social housing and sufficient income, think the living wage as the minimum for all workers, benefits at the same level and decent child allowances.”

Closing the Gap says the economy is sound and growing and we are one of the lowest taxed countries in the developed world.

'Somebody is doing very well but it is not the many children who are in poverty. What has happened to our sense of fairness, concern and justice?” asks Peter.