Charles Waldegrave is a psychologist and social policy researcher. He leads the Family Centre Social Policy Research Unit in Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand. Charles is a joint leader of the ‘New Zealand Poverty Measurement Project’, the ‘Social Isolation and Loneliness among Older Māori and Pacific People’ project and ‘Tai Kaumātuatanga Older Māori Wellbeing and Participation: Present and Future Focus’ both as part of the Ageing Well National Science Challenge in New Zealand.

He leads the team that sets the New Zealand ‘Living Wage’ annually. They have provided the evidence base for housing, income, and other social policy changes that have reduced poverty in New Zealand. Seven out of the ten measures used in the Child Poverty Reduction Act 2018 in New Zealand were developed by NZ Poverty Measurement Project.

He collaborates extensively with international research partners and is an international member of the European research collaboration ROSEnet (Reducing Old-age Social Exclusion network) (COST Action CA15122) (COST refers to European Cooperation in Science and Technology), and is a Core Group international member of a further funded European research collaboration (COST Action CA22167) Participatory Approaches with Older Adults (PAAR-net). He publishes regularly in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters and accessible public reports.