Ihorangi Peters has just recently turned 17.
But he's already well known in the community as a regular voice on issues affecting children in care.
He's been seen at Parliament, shared his views on the care system with multiple news organisations, and has been given awards for his advocacy of others.
But today this story is about him. It's about his battle to get answers from Oranga Tamariki over abuse he suffered in its care.
He was taken out of the care of his parents while he was just a baby, before entering state care at 10 years of age.
Across multiple placements he was abused both physically and emotionally.
"Looking back, I felt sad, angry and scared," he says of his worst years in care.
At age 15 he decided to lay a complaint over the abuse he suffered while in the Oranga Tamariki foster placements.
That was February 2021 - now it's almost two years on and he's still waiting.
"There are moments that I feel they are actually doing something, but there are moments I get really angry and frustrated that it's taken nearly two years to get a complaint resolved," he says.
"I want them to resolve the complaint, and to be provided with closure. I think it would make me feel better being provided with the closure I need."
He says Oranga Tamariki's designated helpline is often left unanswered, despite the agency's promises to him that it would have this fully monitored.
He says the amount of time he's spent waiting is not reasonable.
"I feel hurt and let down, and that they don't really care."
It was just three months ago the child protection agency's acting chief executive Chappie Te Kani sat before the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State Care with a pledge to do better.
He acknowledged how the agency had failed to listen or respond to complaints in the past and said it was listening now.
"We need to continue to listen to the experiences of survivors, tamariki and whānau and be held accountable, so we can know if our work now and in the future is making the difference we are seeking."
Peters is one of those who has given testimony at the hearing, detailing the abuse he suffered while in its care. Those details, which are the subject of his ongoing complaint, can not be publicly disclosed.
But the Christchurch teen's story highlights how despite the agency's repeated promises to do better, there are still problems within its care system. And it is still unable to respond quickly when concerns are raised.
The child protection agency has reportedly been struggling with resourcing issues, and last month staff had threatened to strike, but those plans are on hold as negotiations continue.
Time for change
Jane Searle, chief executive of Child Matters, an organisation that offers advice to those caring for children, says the time for change is long overdue.
"Over the years we've had lots of acknowledgement of what has gone wrong, and how these children have been failed," she says. "So now it's time we actually get some action."
The former police detective says that reform requires additional training and resources to be invested into the agency, to ensure its people are equipped to care for the complex needs of those its responsible for.
Peters also wants change, so that no one-else has to go through what he and many others in care have.
And while that might take time, he hopes that he can at least get his complaint resolved before he turns 18 next year.
In a statement, Oranga Tamariki admitted it had taken too long and reiterated its apologies to the 17-year-old.
"We admire Ihorangi's advocacy not just for himself, but for other children and young people," says Nicolette Dickson, Oranga Tamariki's deputy chief executive of quality and practice experiences.
"We know how much courage it can take for a child to tell us that things are not right for them and we are committed to making this easier for children and young people."
She adds a response to Peters' complaint should be ready in the next month.
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