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A man who came through state care in foster homes, a boys’ home, corrective training and eventually prison, believes his life has been set back at least 30 years by the way he was treated and the physical and psychological abuse he received.

Aaron, who is 50, came from a broken home and his interview with RNZ is the first time he has spoken publicly about his experiences in care.

He lived on the street for a year at the age of 9.

Aaron ended up in the Stanmore Road Boys’ Home in Christchurch at 13.

His stepfather beat him if he ever misbehaved and one day he stood up to him and punched him back. The police were called and Aaron was sent to Stanmore.

One of his first recollections of being in the boys’ home was seeing drug addicts use needles.

It was sort of a violent place.

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Empowering sexual assault survivors and highlighting the importance of education as prevention is set to be the focus for new Australian of the Year Grace Tame.

The 26-year-old from Tasmania was awarded the honour last night, having already been named the Apple Isle’s Australian of the Year.

Ms Tame was awarded for her tireless advocacy for sexual assault survivors, resulting in the overturning of Tasmanian laws preventing survivors from speaking out.

She was just 15 when she was groomed and abused by her high school maths teacher, who was later jailed for his crimes.

Her experience helped spark the #LetHerSpeak campaign, helping Ms Tame become the first woman in Tasmania to be granted the legal right to speak out about her experience as a sexual assault survivor.

Ms Tame has pledged to spend the next year advocating for better education on assault, grooming and psychological manipulation by abusers.

We’ve come a long way but there’s still more work to do in a lot of areas. Child sexual abuse and cultures that enable it still exist. Just as the impacts of evil are borne by all of us, so too are solutions born of all of us.

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A group representing some survivors of abuse in faith-based care wants churches to come out and support the call for the setting up of an independent body to deal with all complaints of abuse.

Survivors have told the inquiry into Abuse in Care that the new body, which must be separate from the state and any religious organisation, is urgent.

Liz Tonks from the Network of Survivors of abuse in faith-based care said they are hoping, when churches appear before the Royal Commission in March, they will back the idea.

We would hope the churches would come out and see the value of doing this and join in that call.

She said it would take it out of the churches’ hands and get the historical abuse cleared-up, giving them a way forward.

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