Capital and maintenance funding for integrated schools

How to pay for both capital and maintenance work, and who takes responsibility.

Level of compliance Main audience Other

Required

  • Boards
  • Proprietors
  • Principals
  • Administrators

School Boards and proprietors must adhere to their roles and responsibilities when it comes to which funds they can use to pay for new capital works, and maintain current school buildings. There are certain exceptions, which are detailed below. 

Paying for capital work at integrated schools

Proprietors are responsible for capital work at their schools. This is a requirement under clause 39, Schedule 6, Education and Training Act 2020(external link).

The Ministry provides Policy One funding to the proprietor for capital maintenance and modernisation projects.

We sometimes provide Policy Two funding so that the proprietor can build new school buildings.

Proprietors can't ask the Board to pay for capital work that they're responsible for. As an agent of the Crown, they are required to abide by their responsibilities.

Using board funding for capital work

However, the board can sometimes pay for capital work using its surplus operational funding. It can only do so if it can demonstrate it also has enough funding to cover all of the school’s:

  • maintenance work
  • operational costs.

The board must get permission from both the proprietor and the Ministry. For permission to be granted:

Using attendance dues for capital work

Proprietors can use attendance dues:

Proprietors can't use attendance dues to improve the school’s property above the standard set out in the integration agreement.

Receiving maintenance funding

Maintenance funding is paid as part of a school’s operational funding. The amount is based on the amount of integrated property, up to the maximum gross square metres entitlement as calculated by the School Property Guide (SPG).

You can view the details of your annual Property Maintenance Grant on the Property Portal.

We pay this funding directly into your school’s bank account in quarterly instalments. The Property Maintenance Grant notices are updated in December (indicative) and July (actual) each year.  For more information contact your Property Advisor.

Paying to maintain integrated property

The Ministry provides funding to the boards of integrated schools to maintain their integrated school property, including buildings, furniture and equipment. This is called the Property Maintenance Grant (PMG).The board must manage this funding.

Maintenance funding 

The PMG covers maintenance work costing under $5000, such as:

  • painting
  • fixing broken equipment
  • minor repairs to buildings and infrastructure (for example, repairing a broken water pipe).

What you can use maintenance funding for

Policy One funding

This funding is paid to the proprietor. It is to pay for capital work over $5,000 that will create a new asset, or improve or replace an existing asset. Any work costing less than $5,000 is treated as an expense (operating cost) and should be paid for using maintenance funding.

Policy One funding for capital work at integrated schools

Paying to maintain board or community property

Boards must use their own funding to pay for the maintenance of property paid for with:

  • the board’s funding, or
  • funding provided by the community.

This can include fundraising or surplus operational funding.

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