Planning and Reporting - Changes to Legislative Requirements

60A

National education guidelines

(1)

The Minister may from time to time, by notice in the Gazette, publish (in their entirety, or by way of a general description and an indication of where the full text can be obtained) all or any of the following:

(a)

national education goals, which are

(i)

statements of desirable achievements by the school system, or by an element of the school system; and

(ii)

statements of government policy objectives for the school system:

(aa)

Foundation curriculum policy statements, which are statements of policy concerning teaching, learning, and assessment that are made for the purposes of underpinning and giving direction to -

(i)

The way in which curriculum and assessment responsibilities are to be managed in schools:

(ii)

National curriculum statements and locally developed curriculum:

(b)

National curriculum statements (that is to say statements of -

(i)

The areas of knowledge and understanding to be covered by students; and

(ii)

The skills to be developed by students; and

(iii)

Desirable levels of knowledge, understanding, and skill, to be achieved by students, during the years of schooling):

(c)

national administration guidelines, which are guidelines relating to school administration and which may (without limitation) -

(i)

set out statements of desirable codes or principles of conduct or administration for specified kinds or descriptions of person or body, including guidelines for the purposes of section 61:

(ii)

set out requirements relating to planning and reporting including -

(A)

scope and content areas, where appropriate:

(B)

the timeframe for the annual update of the school charter:

(C)

broad requirements relating to schools' consultation with parents, staff, school proprietors (in the case of integrated schools) and school communities, and the broad requirements to ensure that Boards take all reasonable steps to discover and consider the views and concerns of Mäori communities living in the geographical area the school serves, in the development of a school charter:

(D)

variations from the framework for school planning and reporting for certain schools or classes of schools, based on school performance:

(iii)

communicate the Government's policy objectives:

(iv)

set out transitional provisions for the purposes of national administration guidelines.

(2)

Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), a notice relating to a national curriculum statement may-

(a)

Specify different commencement dates for different provisions or different purposes, which dates may differ according to the class or designation of a school, the group or year level of students attending a school, or any combination of such classes, designations, groups, or levels:

(b)

Specify a transitional period during which a Board may elect to comply with an existing curriculum statement or the new curriculum statement, and specify a date on which a Board must begin complying with the new curriculum statement:

(c)

Revoke any curriculum statement issued under this section, and revoke any corresponding statement (such as a syllabus) issued in the form of a notice and having effect under the Education Act 1964.] 

61

School charter

(1)

Every Board must, for each school it administers, prepare and maintain a school charter.

(2)

The purpose of a school charter is to establish the mission, aims, objectives, directions, and targets of the Board that will give effect to the Government's national education guidelines and the Board's priorities.

(3)

A school charter must contain the following sections:

(a)

a section that includes -

(i)

the aim of developing, for the school, policies and practices that reflect New Zealand's cultural diversity and the unique position of the Mäori culture; and

(ii)

the aim of ensuring that all reasonable steps are taken to provide instruction in tikanga Mäori (Mäori culture) and te reo Mäori (the Mäori language) for full-time students whose parents ask for it;

(b)

a long-term strategic planning section that -

(i)

establishes the Board's aims and purposes; and

(ii)

establishes for the next 3 to 5 years the Board's aims, objectives, directions, and priorities for intended student outcomes, the school's performance, and use of resources; and

(iii)

includes any aims or objectives that designate the school's special characteristics or its special character (within the meaning of this Act):

(c)

an annually updated section that -

(i)

establishes for the relevant year the Board's aims, directions, objectives, priorities, and targets relating to intended student outcomes, the school's performance, and use of resources; and

(ii)

sets targets for the key activities and achievement of objectives for the year.

(4)

A school charter must include the Board's aims, objectives, directions, priorities, and targets in the following categories:

(a)

student achievement:

(b)

the Board's activities aimed at meeting both general government policy objectives for all schools, being policy objectives set out or referred to in national education guidelines, and specific policy objectives applying to that school:

(c)

the management of the school's and Board's capability, resources, assets, and liabilities, including its human resources, finances, property, and other ownership matters:

(d)

other matters of interest to the public that the Minister may determine.

(5)

A school charter must---

(a)

contain all annual or long-term plans the Board is required to have or has prepared for its own purposes; or

(b)

contain a summary of each plan or a reference to it

62

Procedural requirements of preparing or updating school charter

(1)

The Board must provide the Secretary with a copy of its first school charter and every updated school charter.

(2)

A school charter must be prepared and updated in accordance with national administration guidelines.

63

Effect of school charter

A school charter has effect as an undertaking by the Board to the Minister to take all reasonable steps (not inconsistent with any enactment, or the general law of New Zealand) to ensure that -

(a)

the school is managed, organised, conducted, and administered for the purposes set out or deemed to be contained in the school charter; and

(b)

the school, and its students and community, achieve the aims and objectives set out in the school charter.

63A

When school charter or updated charter takes effect

(1)

When the Secretary receives a school charter or updated school charter, the Secretary must consider whether the charter has been developed or updated in accordance with the requirements of this Act and the national administration guidelines

(2)

Unless it takes effect on a different date under subsection (5), a new or updated school charter takes effect on the 25th working day after the date that the Secretary receives it.

(3)

If, before the first or updated school charter takes effect, the Secretary determines that it was not developed or updated in accordance with the Act or is inconsistent with the Act or the national administration guidelines, the Secretary must notify the Board of the matters in the school charter to be resolved.

(4)

The Secretary must then negotiate with the Board to resolve the matters concerned and, if the Board and the Secretary are unable to reach agreement about the content of the school charter or updated school charter, the Secretary may require the Board to amend the charter or updated charter.

(5)

If the Secretary issues a notice under subsection (3), the school charter or updated charter takes effect-

(a)

on the date agreed by the Secretary and the Board; or

(b)

on the date the Secretary determines to be the commencement date for his or her amendments.

63B

Board must make copies of school charter available

Once a school charter or updated school charter takes effect, the Board must make the charter available.

87

Annual reports

(1)

As soon as is practicable after the end of every financial year, and in any event no later than a day fixed by the Secretary, every Board shall give the Secretary an annual report in accordance with this section.

(2)

A report given under subsection (1) must include-

(a)

the names of all the Board's elected trustees, appointed trustees, and co-opted trustees; and

(b)

the date on which each trustee goes out of office; and

(c)

a report, presented in the manner required by the Minister by notice in the Gazette, on the total remuneration paid to school principals employed by the Board; and

(d)

the Board's annual financial statements; and

(e)

a statement in which schools provide an analysis of any variance between the school's performance and the relevant aims, objectives, directions, priorities, or targets set out in the school charter:

(3)

The annual financial statements must be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting practice, audited as required by section 41(3) of the Public Finance Act 1989, and include all of the following:

(a)

a statement of the financial position of the Board as at its balance date:

(b)

a statement of financial performance reflecting the revenue and expenses of the Board for the financial year:

(c)

if required by generally accepted accounting practice, a statement of cash flows reflecting cash flows of the Board for the financial year:

(d)

a statement of the commitments of the Board as at the balance date:

(e)

a statement of the contingent liabilities of the Board as at the balance date:

(f)

a statement of accounting policies:

(g)

such other statements as are necessary to fairly reflect the financial operations of the Board for the financial year and its financial position at the end of the financial year:

(h)

any other statements that the Secretary determines in consultation with the Auditor-General:

(i)

in relation to each statement required by paragraphs (a) to (c) and, if appropriate, by paragraph (g), budgeted figures for the financial year:

(j)

in relation to each statement required by paragraphs (a) to (c), paragraph (d), and paragraph (e) and, if appropriate, by paragraph (g), comparative actual figures for the previous financial year.

(4)

The annual financial statements must be accompanied by a statement of responsibility signed by the chair of the Board and principal, as required by section 42 of the Public Finance Act 1989.