Introduction to operational funding
What is operational funding?
Operational funding is the money a board of trustees receives
from the Government to implement the goals of the school’s
charter, and for the running of the school.
Operational funding does not include funding for the salaries of
entitlement teachers, property, or large capital items. These are
paid for separately.
When is it paid?
Operational funding is paid quarterly in a bulk grant directly to
the board of trustees’ bank account.
The funding year starts on 1 January and ends on 31 December.
Quarterly funding instalments are paid in advance at the
beginning of each funding period, as shown in the table below.
This payment method ensures that when an entitlement is adjusted
up or down, the board receives 100% of its entitlement for the
current year, in the current year.
| Instalment paid
on the first working day of: |
Period covered |
Number of months covered |
Percentage
of remaining entitlement paid |
| January |
January-March |
3 months |
25% |
| April |
April-June |
3 months |
33.3% |
| July |
July-September |
3 months |
50% |
| October |
October-December |
3 months |
100% |
What can operational funding be used
for?
Boards of trustees are responsible for setting priorities and
managing the total funding. In doing so, the board must meet the
following requirements:
- The National Education Guidelines.
- The National Administration Guidelines.
- Their obligations as good employers.
- Any legislative and contractual requirements to which they
are subject.
- Achieving the objectives specified in their charter.
Are the funds 'tagged' for a
specific purposes?
Although the funding entitlement notice shows the grant broken
down into various components, these are not ‘tagged’ funds and do
not need to be accounted for individually. The only exception to
this is funding provided for Secondary Tertiary Alignment
Resource (STAR) programmes.
Bank accounts
All payments from the Ministry of Education are direct credited
to boards’ bank accounts.
If the board changes its bank account number, a Bank Account –
change form must be completed and sent to:
Finance Division
Ministry of Education
PO Box 1666
Wellington
Change of Bank Account forms can be found on the Ministry website
at:
www.minedu.govt.nz/resourcingforms
GST
All operational funding is GST inclusive.