Summary of Vote Education and Vote Tertiary Education initiatives

These tables exclude initiatives funded as emergency expenditure in response to COVID-19.

Cost pressure initiatives

Budget Initiative and Funding

(five-year operating and 10-year capital)
Description
Adjusting Learning Support Funding for Population Growth

Vote Education
  • Operating = $38.859m
This initiative will provide funding to maintain support to the 20-25% of children in early childhood education and schooling who require additional support to fulfil their learning potential. Currently only some targeted learning supports are adjusted for population growth. As student numbers grow and their needs change, this means that the real value of funding decreases. This initiative maintains the value of learning support funding by adjusting it for changes in total student numbers. Led by the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Tracey Martin.
Changes in Demand

Vote Education
  • Operating = $100.359m
This initiative will provide funding for the impact of Forecast Changes in the 2019 March Baseline Update and October Baseline Update processes. This covers projected changes in expenditure on teacher salaries, schools operational funding, Early Childhood Education subsidies, integrated schools’ property, and school transport in response to changes in demand. Led by the Minister of Education.
Christchurch Schools Rebuild Programme

Vote Education
  • Operating = $25.800m
  • Capital = $91.420m
This initiative aims to rebuild the network of Christchurch schools following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes. This will be done by funding the Christchurch Schools’ Rebuild (CSR) programme for another year. This is consistent with the $1.137 billion announced in 2013, and the $206 million cost increases identified in the 2018 midpoint review. Funding to complete the CSR programme will be sought through future budgets. Led by the Minister of Education.
Contingency: Administration of Code of Practice for Pastoral Care of Domestic Tertiary Students

Vote Tertiary Education
  • Operating = $6.055m
This initiative will provide funding to administer a domestic code of pastoral care for domestic tertiary students, and an associated disputes resolution scheme, with effect from 2021. Led by the Minister of Education.
Contingency: Schools Payroll – Additional Education Payroll Limited Core Services Funding

Vote Education
  • Operating = $7.600m
This initiative will provide funding for an increase in Education Payroll Limited’s (EPL) fee for the delivery of core payroll services. This includes transaction volume increases over the initial three-year term of the contract and transition to a new operating model. Led by the Minister of Education.
Continuing the Early Childhood Education Provider Assessment Group

Vote Education
  • Operating = $7.847m
This initiative will provide funding to continue the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Provider Assessment Group (PAG). PAG provides stewardship of the ECE sector and ensures that public funds are used appropriately. PAG uses data and evidence to identify ECE services at risk of providing poor outcomes, and proactively investigates ECE providers with indicators of financial difficulty or mismanagement, including detecting and addressing fraud. Led by the Minister of Education.
Cost Adjustment for Early Childhood Education Subsidies

Vote Education
  • Operating = $122.651m
This initiative will provide funding for a cost adjustment of 1.6% for the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Subsidy for under 2s, ECE Subsidy for 2 and overs, 20 Hours ECE, Equity Funding (all components), and Targeted Funding for Disadvantage, with effect from 1 January 2021. These subsidies enable early learning service providers to deliver quality early childhood education (ECE) for the children in their care. The cost adjustment would enable providers to maintain existing levels of quality ECE in the face of rising costs. Led by the Minister of Education.
Cost Adjustment for Schools’ Operational Grant

Vote Education
  • Operating = $105.205m
This initiative will provide funding for a cost adjustment of 1.6% for schools’ operational grant funding, including base funding for Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu (Te Kura), with effect from 1 January 2021.This is core resourcing to support teaching and learning, and the maintenance of the Crown’s investment in school property. This initiative seeks to ensure schools can maintain current service levels in the face of rising cost pressures. It also includes some additional resourcing for heat, light and water on top of the 1.6% increase. All students at all state and state-integrated schools will benefit from this increase. Led by the Minister of Education.
Cost Adjustment for Secondary-Tertiary Programmes (Trades Academies)

Vote Education
  • Operating = $6.265m
This initiative will provide funding for a cost adjustment of 1.6% to baseline funding for secondary-tertiary programmes (Trades Academy) funding. A cost adjustment will help schools and tertiary education organisations (TEOs) maintain the quality of tuition and training, as well as meet other core costs associated with running programmes. This will be done by increasing the General Teaching and Learning and the Trades Top-up components of the Trades Academy funding model, and will also be used to meet transport costs. Led by the Minister of Education.
Cost Adjustment for Tuition Subsidies

Vote Tertiary Education
  • Operating = $140.977m
This initiative will provide funding to increase tertiary education tuition and training subsidies to maintain the quality of tuition and training as costs in the tertiary education system (particularly labour costs) increase over time. The increase in per-student subsidies will help ensure delivery by providers remains relevant and responds to students’ and employers’ needs. The increase strikes a balance between helping providers manage increases in delivery costs, but with an expectation that they make effective and efficient investments to maintain quality and sustainability. Led by the Minister of Education.
English for Speakers of Other Languages

Vote Education
  • Operating = $21.226m
This initiative will provide an increased amount of funding of 12.19% for each English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) student, and addresses the cost pressures that schools are encountering. Over the last six years, additional funding for ESOL has addressed volume increases with no rate increases since 2010. With increases in salaries and rates in the past five years, ESOL funding is not meeting schools’ rising costs for quality provision. Led by the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Jenny Salesa.
Home-based Early Childhood Education: Support for Educators to Become Qualified

Vote Education
  • Operating = $36.150m
This initiative will provide funding to enable the existing educator workforce to transition to a minimum Level 4 Early Childhood Education (ECE) qualification. This includes funding for visiting teachers to support the educator workforce as they complete the Level 4 ECE qualification. Home-based ECE services on the quality funding rate will receive a 3.8% rate increase. Funding will also enable changes to Ministry of Education IT systems so that the Ministry can collect information on visiting teachers, educators and homes. Led by the Minister of Education.
Improving Teacher Pay in Education and Care Services

Vote Education
  • Operating = $151.124m

Government announces pay increases for lowest paid teachers(external link)
This initiative will provide funding to improve pay for qualified and certificated teachers in education and care services. Improving pay rates will increase teacher wellbeing, improve retention, make studying to become a qualified Early Childhood Teacher (ECE) teacher more attractive, and promote more consistent quality education and care. Led by the Minister of Education.
Managing Growth at Public Private Partnership Schools

Vote Education
  • Operating = $31.493
  • Capital = $23.781
This initiative will provide funding to expand four Public Private Partnership (PPP) Schools due to growing rolls, as forecast in the National Education Growth Plan. The schools are Wakatipu High School, Rolleston College, Hobsonville Point Primary and Te Ao Mārama. This funding will expand the schools’ capacity by a total of 1,860 student spaces. This initiative will provide the total capital and ongoing operating funding to support these expansions to the end of the PPP project agreement. Funding covers the cost of designing, building, financing and maintaining the expansions. Led by the Minister of Education.
Pay Equity

Vote Education
  • Operating = $3.403m
This initiative will provide funding for the investigation and resolution of pay equity claims which seek to remove gender-based undervaluation in the schooling system lodged by unions on behalf of staff and teachers employed by Boards of Trustees. The Ministry is legally required to consider these claims, and negotiate and recommend settlements on behalf of the Crown. Led by the Minister of Education.
School High Health Needs Fund

Vote Education
  • Operating = $19.655m
This initiative will provide additional funding for the School High Health Needs Fund (SHHNF). SHHNF provides teacher aide support for students with high health needs who need care and supervision for more than six weeks so they can attend school safely.
Since 2014 the number of students supported through the SHHNF has grown by an average of 16.3% each year. This initiative ensures that funding will be sufficient to meet demand. Led by the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Tracey Martin.
School Investment Package

Vote Education
  • Operating = $104.560m
This initiative will provide funding to cover the capital charge and depreciation costs required to implement the School Investment Package (SIP). The package was announced by Government on 1 December 2019 and allocated approximately $400m capital funding to improve the condition of school property for around 2,050 schools across New Zealand. Led by the Minister of Education.
Schools Payroll Strategy and Compliance

Vote Education
  • Operating = $2.000m
This initiative will provide funding for the development of a programme of work to ensure that the schools payroll service continues to be compliant with legislation and employment agreements. It also covers the next phase of school payroll strategy development, including developing and assessing potential future options for school payroll delivery. Led by the Minister of Education.
Supporting Kōhanga Reo Cost Pressures

Vote Education
  • Operating = $93.370m
This initiative will provide ongoing funding for staffing cost pressures in kōhanga reo, in the context of helping to respond and resolve the Wai 2336 kōhanga reo claim findings and government obligations to protect the taonga of te reo Māori. In 2019/20 only one year of additional funding ($21.5 million) was provided. That additional funding has been disbursed to kōhanga reo via increased funded child hour (FCH) rates for the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Subsidy and 20 Hours Subsidy. Led by the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Kelvin Davis.
Supporting Playcentre Sustainability

Vote Education
  • Operating = $3.073m
This initiative will provide funding for playcentres to help support financial sustainability of this service type. Led by the Minister of Education.
Supporting the Education Infrastructure Service

Vote Education
  • Operating = $15.000m
This initiative will provide one year’s funding to boost Education Infrastructure Service (EIS) departmental operating budget (excluding capital charge, depreciation, and Public Private Partnership schools). This is due to an increase in the cost of managing a growing school property portfolio and the reduction of available revenue. Funding will enable EIS to maintain progress for its various work programmes, in addition to gearing up for any new pipelines of capital spend and service delivery to schools, without compromising crucial services such as rationalisation and personnel (including frontline staff who provide valuable support and advice to schools). Led by the Minister of Education.

 

Other necessary spending initiatives

Budget Initiative and Funding

(five-year operating and 10-year capital)
Description
Extending the Pilot of the Community Organisation Refugee Sponsorship (CORS) Category

Initiative led by Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment

Vote Education
  • Operating = $1.065m

Vote Tertiary Education
  • Operating = $0.849m
Led by the Minister of Immigration. This initiative provides funding to extend the Community Organisation Refugee Sponsorship (CORS) category pilot for a further three years in order to gather more information on the effectiveness of this method of refugee resettlement at meeting its objectives.
Ministry of Education Payroll: Holidays Act Assessment Work

Vote Education
  • Operating = $2.000m
This initiative will provide funding to identify, assess and find solutions for areas of non-compliance with the Holidays Act 2003 for the Ministry of Education's departmental payroll. Led by the Minister of Education.
Support For Decarbonisation In The State Sector Through Funding Assistance To Deliver Low Emissions Energy Investments

Initiative led from Vote Business, Science and Innovation in the Economic Development and Infrastructure Sector

Vote Education
  • Operating = $9.882
A State sector decarbonisation programme would deliver funding and implementation assistance to enable agencies in the State sector, including hospitals and schools, to deliver low emissions investments without the need to divert existing funding from core service delivery. Led by the Minister of Energy and Resources
Supporting the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand to Transition to an Annual Practising Certificate Fee

Vote Education
  • Operating = $16.500m
This initiative will provide funding to make up the difference in the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand's income over two years to enable it to transition to an annual practising certificate fee. The transition to an annual practising certificate fee is expected to help to mitigate the impact on teachers of the Council’s increased practising certificate fee. The annual fee will mean that teachers will pay a smaller annual amount of approximately $157, rather than a larger sum of $470 every three years. Led by the Minister of Education.

 

COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund

Budget Initiative and Funding

(five-year operating and 10-year capital)
Description

100% Qualified And Certificated Teachers
Vote Education

  • Operating = $278.249m

This initiative provides funding to reinstate a higher funding band for teacher-led, centre-based services (i.e. kindergartens and education and care centres) that employ a 100% qualified and certificated teaching workforce. This is expected to improve the quality and frequency of teacher-child interactions, and lead to better learning and developmental outcomes for children in services employing a 100% certificated workforce. COVID-19 is likely to lower demand for early learning services. This initiative maintains employment opportunities for qualified ECE teachers in an environment when fewer services are likely to be operating. Led by the Minister of Education.

Adult And Community Education (ACE) - A Modern Approach To Night Classes
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $15.971m

This initiative provides funding to build the capability of providers and expanding the range of Government-funded Adult and Community Education (ACE) programmes to better meet the learning needs of New Zealanders in the post COVID 19 21st century. Led by the Minister of Education.

Careers System Online - Tiro Whetū
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $11.480m
  • Capital = $15.000m

This initiative enables the Tertiary Education System to develop a free, consistent, accessible, high quality tool for learners and workers to use throughout their lifetime to plan and manage their careers. It will help New Zealanders understand their transferrable skills and develop a personalised career plan. With a focus on supporting vulnerable populations and key government agencies. The tool will help New Zealanders understand the skills they have and their transferability to other jobs; clarify job-to-job flows, and raises New Zealanders confidence that their experience has given them skills relevant to jobs in demand. It will help secondary school students to gain line of sight to career opportunities and learning pathways needed, broadening their options to enable good decision-making. Led by the Minister of Education.

Contingency: COVID-19 Support for Apprentices
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $412.000m

This funding will support employers to keep their apprentices and continue to support their training, with a focus on apprentices getting industry-relevant skills that support ongoing sustainable employment. Led by the Minister of Education.

Early intervention: Te Kōhanga Reo – Learning Support Initiative and Targeted COVID-19 Response
Vote Education

  • Operating = $2.839m

This initiative enables the Ministry of Education to partner with Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust to co-design and co-deliver targeted strategies and support for the kōhanga whānau (kaiako, parents, whānau) to support tamariki with learning support needs and reduce the gap in access to learning support. This initiative will focus on keeping kōhanga whānau connected during COVID-19 alert levels and enabling a safe return of all tamariki and whānau to Kōhanga.
Programmes that benefit Māori must reflect cultural ways of knowing and being. The combined expertise of the Trust (Te Ao Māori and Te Reo Māori) and the specialist knowledge of the Ministry, will ensure that all communication, resources and approaches are built on Kaupapa Māori and meet the unique needs of their communities.  
Led by the Minister of Education.

Establishing a Student Hardship Fund for 2020
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $20.000m

This initiative establishes a COVID 19 student hardship fund for 2020 of $20 million to be available immediately. This will help students who may fall through the cracks of the general COVID 19 financial supports to access financial support and allow them to remain connected with their education provider. Led by the Minister of Education.

Establishing Workforce Development Councils to support COVID-19 Recovery
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $230.000m

This initiative provides funding to accelerate the establishment of Workforce Development Councils (WDCs) to give industry greater leadership across the vocational education and training system, and help ensure the delivery of the skills industries needed to recover from the impact of COVID 19. WDCs are a foundational component of the Government’s Reform of Vocational Education. Led by the Minister of Education.

Increasing Trades Academy Places and Supporting Secondary Transitions
Vote Education

  • Operating = $32.323m

This initiative provides funding to increase the volume of Trades Academy places by 1,000 places a year from 2021 onwards. This is intended to give schools more options to meet the needs of their students during the expected economic downturn and will ultimately help with the economic recovery by building up our skilled workforce. It will also continue funding for the network of Ministry regionally-based staff to provide specialist support for schools and tertiary education organisations, focusing on learner achievement, retention and transition, and those not in education, employment or training.
Led by the Minister of Education.

Maintaining Kōhanga Reo Viability During the Post-COVID-19 Rebuilding Phase
Vote Education

  • Operating = $99.956m

This initiative provides funding to improve the sustainability, capacity and capability of Kōhanga Reo. This will assist the Crown to revitalise te reo Māori and help integrate it into the learning of children by 2025. The initiative will increase the funding rates for each kōhanga reo and the annual funding the Ministry provides the Kōhanga Reo National Trust (the Trust) to support the kōhanga reo network. The support for the Trust includes funding to assist with assessment of, and associated remedial and rehabilitation work on, kōhanga reo properties. Led by the Minister of Education and the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Kelvin Davis.

Meeting Increased Learner Need for Tertiary Education
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $334.100m

This initiative provides funding to manage the cost of funding additional tertiary education enrolments from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2023 resulting from the impact of COVID-19. Led by the Minister of Education.

Mitigating Impacts of Socioeconomic Disadvantage: School Lunches
Vote Education

  • Operating = $216.700m
  • Capital = $3.900m

This initiative provides funding to relieve food insecurity and improve educational outcomes for students through expanding the Free and Healthy School Lunch Programme to up to 200,000 more Year 1-13 students. Delivery targets schools with the highest disadvantage using the Equity Index. Before the pandemic around one in five children lived in households with severe or moderate food insecurity. This initiative will help cushion the blow of COVID 19 impacts on students in already socio-economically disadvantaged households who will now be experiencing heightened financial stress, job and income losses. In Term 3 recruitment, planning and systems development will support the scaled up programme, with expansion of school lunches starting in Term 4. Led by the Minister for Education.

Operating Contingency: Targeted Support for Pacific Learners and Families
Vote Education

  • Operating = $80.236m

This initiative provides funding to ensure Pacific learners and families are equipped to access education during the COVID 19 response. It supports Pacific learners’ access to education by: funding brokerage services between Pacific learners and families and education services, Pacific providers and government agencies; establishing a Pacific Education Innovation Fund to promote culturally sustaining practice in the COVID 19 context; enabling leaders in Tautai o le Moana, a principal leadership collaborative, to promote culture change in schools to support Pacific learners; providing governance and management support for Pacific early learning centres; and translating and distributing key materials in Pacific languages. Led by the Associate Minister of Education, Hon Jenny Salesa.

Support for Group Training Schemes to Retain Apprentices in Preparation of Post-COVID-19 Economic Recovery
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $19.630m

This initiative funds Group Training Schemes to continue to employ apprentices whose host employers (primarily small construction businesses) are unable to support them and provide on-the-job opportunities. Retaining these apprentices through the COVID 19 restrictions will enable a quick restart of training once the restrictions are lifted and business opportunities improve for host employers. This will ensure apprentices can continue with their training and become work-ready sooner. Led by the Minister of Education.

Support for Schools Payroll
Vote Education

  • Operating = $1.960m

This initiative provides funding for Education Payroll Limited to cover the additional costs and increased workload incurred as a result of COVID 19. This includes funding for temporary staff to clear the backlog of operations work and to cover the increase in costs regarding the delayed implementation of the Education Payroll Development Programme and the new payroll user interface, EdPay. Led by the Minister of Education.

Supporting Māori Learners and Te Reo Māori post COVID-19
Vote Education

  • Operating = $200.000m

This initiative will support Māori learners and whānau to reconnect with education services following COVID 19 to ensure they access the full range of education and wellbeing services and achieve successful outcomes by engaging Iwi and Māori organisations to provide facilitation and brokerage services. It will also strengthen the delivery of te reo Māori in Education through enhanced distance- and place-based blended approaches, including targeted support for the education workforce, resource development and information to learners and whānau. Led by Associate Minister of Education, Hon Kelvin Davis.

Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $320.000m

This initiative provides funding to make vocational learning options fees-free over the immediate period of the economic recession (2021-2022), to support people to upskill during the economic downturn, within the workplace, or at providers. It supports education and training towards qualifications to meet industry skill needs, and vocational learning for roles that support community wellbeing. It also provides training in smaller learning blocks, which supports delivery flexibility during the pandemic alert levels and will help fill gaps in learners’ employment. Led by the Minister of Education.

Transitional Industry Training Organisation and Workforce Development Council-Led COVID-19 Response Projects
Vote Tertiary Education

  • Operating = $16.360m

This initiative provides funding for projects led by Transitional Industry Training Organisations (TITOs) and Workforce Development Councils (WDCs), involving industries, industry groups and training providers. The investment will be used to to develop local and industry training responses to COVID‑19, design alternative arrangements for apprentices who have lost jobs, design learning pathways with providers that work for industries, and review existing training standards and programme components so they are fit for purpose as short packages of learning or as part of changed pathway designs.
Led by the Minister of Education.

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