Strengthening children’s ability to manage frustration, persist with challenges, pay attention, and show empathy is not optional — it is foundational. Across Aotearoa, tamariki aged 3–7 are learning these self-regulation skills through ENGAGE’s play-based games in early childhood centres (ECEs) and, as our work expands, in primary schools.We are pleased to confirm a significant step forward in this mission: a new partnership with the Aotearoa Lifecourse Fund (ALF) to support a programme of testing and research as ENGAGE grows its primary school delivery.
Why This Partnership Matters
ALF exists to find, fund, and scale evidence-based programmes that can materially shift long-term outcomes for tamariki and rangatahi. Their decision to back ENGAGE reflects the strength of the existing evidence and the potential for scalable national impact.
Self-regulation: the emotional, cognitive, and behavioural skills that help children manage challenges — is one of the strongest predictors of adult wellbeing across health, employment, relationships, and life satisfaction. The Dunedin Longitudinal Study brought this into sharp focus, and the science is now unequivocal: building these skills early pays lifelong dividends.
ENGAGE is designed to build exactly these foundations during the developmental window when progress is fastest and most enduring.
A Proven and Scalable New Zealand Solution
ENGAGE is supported by multiple high-quality research studies, including findings published in Nature’s Scientific Reports, confirming sustained improvements in self-regulation. The broader ecosystem for large-scale delivery is already underway as ENGAGE has achieved large-scale government funding for early childhood centres:
- $20m in 2023 for ENGAGE in ECEs, scaling to half of all centres by 2027.
- Our partner, Methodist Mission Southern, has established the capability required to deliver ENGAGE to a whole generation of children.
What Aotearoa Lifecourse Fund’s Investment Will Enable
The partnership will support a structured testing and research programme across 25 primary schools in multiple regions. This work will:
- Test whether the developmental benefits previously demonstrated in primary schools can be replicated in a new cohort across diverse contexts.
- Assess the extent to which teachers sustain ENGAGE games and techniques beyond the initial 10-week period, and identify what conditions and supports improve long-term sustainment.
- Test improved resources — including digital tools — and refine implementation design to ensure ENGAGE can be delivered effectively and consistently at scale.
Looking Ahead
ENGAGE is committed to giving tamariki across Aotearoa the self-regulation skills that underpin lifelong wellbeing. ALF’s investment strengthens that mission and accelerates the work required to reach more primary schools, more communities, and ultimately, a whole generation.
We are proud to partner with an organisation whose goals are aligned with ours and whose support makes this work possible at the scale required.