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When schools are eligible for our support
Your school can apply to us for staffing support if you have a reduction in your staffing of a least 1 full-time teacher equivalent (FTTE) role.
If you only have a reduction in units, middle management allowances or senior management allowances the same conditions apply.
You must meet our conditions to receive this staffing.
How much support your school can get
The maximum amount of surplus staffing support you can get is the lower of:
- the whole number part of the reduction in your entitlement staffing, or
- the number of permanent teaching positions you have over your new entitlement staffing.
For example:
- Your 2024 entitlement staffing is 15.5 FTTE and 12 units.
- Your 2025 entitlement staffing is 14.3 FTTE and 11 units.
- The staffing reduction for 2025 is 1.2 FTTE and 1 unit.
- You have 15.3 permanent teaching positions and 12 units.
The maximum support you would be eligible for is 1.0 FTTE and 1 unit.
Conditions to meet
- Reduction in staff numbers
Your school’s entitlement for the next year must have a staffing reduction of at least 1.00 FTTE on your current year. Boards usually manage their own staffing for reductions less than this.
A minimum of 1.00 FTTE must be disestablished. This could be a single full-time or multiple part-time teaching positions. We will not support a reduction in hours.
- Permanent teaching positions
You need to have:
- followed our guidance for permanent appointments
- contacted us before making any new permanent appointments.
You could be liable for the cost of any recent appointments that we have not been notified of.
- Teacher agreement
Your school board must have evidence that the disestablished teacher has agreed to their future options.
Evidence must include:
- Board meeting minutes.
- A letter to the teacher telling them their position will be disestablished.
- A letter or email from the teacher to the board stating their chosen option:
- supernumerary at the school for their surplus staffing period
- supernumerary at another school for the surplus staffing period
- retraining for further study in the field of education
- long service pay, if conditions are met
- severance pay, if conditions are met.
For the retraining option, we require additional paperwork showing the course:
- is equivalent to tertiary level – at least New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) level 7. In the case of te reo Māori or Pacific languages we will consider courses at NZQA level 4 and above in recognition of government strategies to support the retention, revitalisation and longevity of our languages.
- is provided by a NZQA accredited provider
- is full-time
- enhances or upgrades teaching skills (the course must focus on classroom practice and/or school management).
We consider all applications on a case-by-case basis.
Timeline for applications
The process for surplus staffing support opens from mid-September.
Mid-September to October
We publish your provisional entitlement staffing on Pourato. Your school determines if positions need to be disestablished and confirms what these positions will be.
Your school must notify staff that their positions will be disestablished according to the timeframe in their collective agreement.
Mid-November
Your school applies to resourcing for surplus staffing support. Apply as soon as possible.
If the application is approved, boards need to make sure the teacher is coded correctly on their payroll. If the teacher is redeployed to another school, their board is responsible for managing their pay.
How to apply
Fill out the surplus staffing support form and send it to resourcing along with:
- board meeting minutes
- evidence of future options for the teacher, such as a letter from another school if they have chosen supernumerary or evidence of enrolment in a qualification
- for a severance payment, evidence that all other options have been considered.
Surplus staffing report form