Initiatives have been discontinued, and their funding reprioritised, in line with the Government’s priority to deliver effective and fiscally sustainable public services and the need to focus on core activities in the current constrained fiscal environment. Initiatives have been stopped due to ending COVID-19 responses, reducing duplication of services, reducing underutilised programmes, and not renewing contracts at the end of their contracted period.

Savings have also been made in the Ministry of Education’s operational spending, focusing on reducing duplication, increasing integration across the organisation and stopping some work programmes.

Savings and reprioritisation within Budget 24 will have only a limited impact on frontline services, as savings and reprioritisation primarily targeted initiatives that had low utilisation or where alternative or similar initiatives are available.

Workforce – Ministry of Education

• $148 million opex

This will reduce the total number of FTE in the Ministry of Education through more efficient work practices, changes in organisational structure, and stopping some work programmes.

Contractors and consultants

• $62 million opex

This initiative reprioritises funding for contractors and consultants at the Ministry of Education.

Professional services

• $44 million opex

This initiative reprioritises funding for professional services at the Ministry of Education. Professional services are outsourced services that have been contracted to provide all or part of a business activity or function.

These services will be reviewed and options for streamlining or providing services in-house will be considered.

Travel and meeting-related expenditure

• $5 million opex

This initiative reprioritises funding for travel and meeting expenditure at the Ministry of Education. This initiative focuses on costs relating to travel and meetings that are not essential in delivering the Government’s priorities and maintaining the delivery of frontline services and support to schools and students.

Education Payroll Ltd

• $5 million opex

This saving arises from Education Payroll Ltd reducing back-office functions.

Departmental reprioritisation through business efficiencies

• $92 million opex

This initiative reprioritises operating funding from business efficiencies across the Ministry of Education that can be found through reprioritising work and implementing better business processes.

• $22 million opex

Savings come from disestablishing Te Kawa Matakura. Te Kawa Matakura had low participation and was consistently underspent.

Underspends in early learning and schooling services

• $16 million opex

This saving is due to reoccurring underspends across the following programmes:

• Operational funding for certified playgroups (demand driven).
• Whānau at Home (formerly HIPPY) programme.
• Early Learning Taskforce (demand driven).
• Positive Behaviour for Learning – specifically professional development and resources.

Creatives in Schools

• $13 million opex

This saving disestablishes the Creatives in Schools programme. This programme was a COVID-19 response to support the arts sector. This reprioritisation is not a reduction in teaching and learning across the full curriculum. The arts continue to be a compulsory learning area for Years 0 to 10.

Early childhood targeted assistance for participation

• $11 million opex

The saving arises from returning current underspends in the Targeted Assistance for Participation programme. TAP funding will continue to meet existing commitments but funding has been underspent in recent years.

Prime Minister’s Vocational Excellence Award

• $4 million opex

This will end the Prime Minister’s Vocational Excellence Award. Removal of the award will have no material impact on the achievement outcome of the students it recognises. The award has been delivered in recognition of excellence in vocational education, not to incentivise achievement itself.

Partnering to strengthen Māori education

• $4 million opex

This saving disestablishes the Secretariat for Te Pae Roa Ministerial Group. No activity has been stopped to realise the savings. Te Pae Roa delivered their final report in March 2024, and their term ended in April 2024.

Laptops for teachers

• $2 million opex

This saving arises from moving the Laptops for Teachers programme from a 3-year lease to a 4-year lease.

Arts coordinators

$1 million opex

This stops the Arts Coordinators/Arts Online service from 2024-2025. The current Arts Online service was based on an old, increasingly unstable technology and arts teachers have largely migrated to better alternatives.

Data for wellbeing – Te Rito Kaitiakitanga group

• $0.3 million opex

The Te Rito Kaitiakitanga group was established with the expectation it would hold meetings in person requiring travel and in some cases accommodation for members. Meetings have instead been organised online or to coincide with in-person meetings of Te Rito working groups and are therefore not incurring costs, so the allocated funding is being returned.

Services Academy National Hui

• $0.1 million opex

This returns funding for the Services Academy National Hui. This event can be held online or in conjunction with other current NZDF courses.