An Oranga Tamariki office’s handling of a baby's death was the subject of a scathing internal review and it also managed the Tom Phillips case, RNZ can reveal.

The Ministry for Children says it has made a number of changes at both a site and regional level and has recently appointed a Waikato commissioner.

RNZ earlier revealed an internal review of the government department found a series of failures in its handling of Mustafa Ali before he was killed by his father in June 2024.

Mustafa was hospitalised about eight months before his death with serious injuries that his father, Mukzameel Ali, said were caused when he fell while carrying the baby down some stairs.

A review found several failings in the agency's response including "minimal analysis" of risk and that the monitoring was not good enough.

It also said Oranga Tamariki staff reported there was a "lack of basic knowledge of practice and legislation" among some of the social workers and supervisors on site.

In response to questions from RNZ, Oranga Tamariki deputy chief executive Thomas Ronan confirmed both Mustafa's case and the Phillips case were "managed by the same site for a time".

He said they were handled by different social workers.

A report of concern was first sent to Oranga Tamariki by a health staff member in October 2023 about unexplained injuries to Mustafa.

Phillips disappeared from the rural Waikato town of Marokopa with his three children in September 2021. He then reappeared and was the subject of criminal charges.

In December of that year. he disappeared again with the children into bushland.

He died following a shootout with police in September 2025. The children were located that day.

RNZ earlier reported it is understood Oranga Tamariki received several reports of concern about the children, both from family and police.

RNZ also asked about the agency's involvement with the Phillips children, including reports of concern.

"We acknowledge the understandable public interest in this case, but that does not outweigh our duty to protect these children's privacy.

"Further, there are suppression orders that apply and a Public Inquiry preparing to finalise their report."

Ronan said the agency was also bound by the Family Court Act.

He told RNZ that since 2024, the agency had made a number of changes at both a site and regional level to "ensure that our practice aligns with expectations and that kaimahi have the support they need to manage what is incredibly complex work".

It had also appointed a commissioner for the Waikato region.

Changes made at a site level included a new approach to intake and assessment work, additional practice support for the site and closer monitoring of non-accidental injuries and unborn/newborn baby monitoring by the practice leader.

The site risk register is reviewed weekly and the regional risk register reviewed fortnightly at a minimum, and staff now had a weekly meeting with senior site leaders to talk through case triaging and work load management and decision making.

At a regional level there had been ongoing training on child protection protocols and upskilling in other areas for staff who require it and strengthening professional supervision for staff and increasing oversight of cases.

The agency had also introduced new assessment and planning tools to support social work decision making alongside families and increased "collaborative ways of working across agencies and within communities to keep children safe".

Phillips inquiry

The government earlier announced an inquiry into the handling of the Tom Phillips case by authorities and whether all "practicable steps" were taken to ensure the safety and welfare of the children. 

Former Attorney-General Judith Collins earlier said the decision to establish a public inquiry "reflects the significant public interest and concern for the children's welfare over the almost four years they were missing".

"It is important that we establish the facts and determine whether agencies could take steps to prevent, or resolve similar situations more quickly and effectively in the future," Collins said.

The terms of reference had been developed with the privacy and welfare of the children in mind. The inquiry would therefore be conducted in private and without public hearings.

Collins said the inquiry must also respect the independence of the courts and would not include findings on judicial decisions.

The Honourable Justice Simon Moore, KC, was appointed as the sole member of the inquiry.

The government received the final report on July 21.

Attorney General Chris Bishop said last week the deadline for the inquiry had been extended by a month, in order to "clarify a matter".

He said the inquiry had provided a "thorough and exacting report" on the nature and extent of government agencies' involvement with Phillips and the children.

That included from before their disappearance through to when they were found.

"The inquiry has carefully considered suppression orders and the welfare of the children in its reporting.

"This aligns with the terms of reference's first principle, which ensures the children's welfare is not further threatened," Bishop said.

But he wanted an "issue" clarified, and intended to extend the inquiry's reporting date. No other aspects of the existing terms of reference would change.

He would present the final report to Parliament "as soon as practicable", but prior to that, would consider whether any information needed to be redacted to avoid impacting the administration of justice.