17 Jun 2014

One in four New Zealanders disabled

3:22 pm on 17 June 2014

Latest census figures show one in four New Zealanders are disabled.

Statistics New Zealand's Disability Survey released on Tuesday identifies 1.1 million people as disabled, with 27 percent of adults affected by their impairments on a daily basis.

The agency's labour market and household statistics manager, Diane Ramsay, says the high number is in part due to an ageing population.

The survey collected information from interviews of 23,000 disabled and non-disabled people last year.

While physical disabilities were most common in adults, children mainly faced learning impairments.