Education and Training Amendment Bill Introduced to Parliament

“Many students are not responding well to the existing ‘one size fits all’ school system, and New Zealand is facing a crisis with school attendance and achievement at record low levels,” said Mr. Seymour.

The Education and Training Amendment Bill, which aims to establish charter schools, encourage the opening of more early learning centres, and increase transparency on school attendance, has been introduced for its first reading in Parliament, announced Associate Education Minister David Seymour.

"Every child deserves an education that enables them to flourish. To achieve that, the Government is making the New Zealand education system more flexible and responsive to family and student needs," stated Mr. Seymour.

The Bill will:

Establish a framework for setting up and operating charter schools, including the application and approval process, monitoring, property management, staffing, and the establishment of the Charter School Authorisation Board.

Repeal early childhood education (ECE) network provisions, which were introduced last year and made it difficult to open new centres.

Establish provisions for creating rules on the type and frequency of student attendance data provided by schools.

"Many students are not responding well to the existing 'one size fits all' school system, and New Zealand is facing a crisis with school attendance and achievement at record low levels," said Mr. Seymour.

"Charter schools are publicly funded and provide students and families with more schooling choices. Educators at charter schools will have the autonomy to respond to student needs innovatively while being held to stricter accountability for outcomes compared to state schools. This will raise educational achievement, especially for students disengaged from school.

"Now that the Bill is introduced, applications for new and converting schools will open in July. There has been overwhelming interest from educators exploring the charter model, and I expect schools will open from term 1 in 2025.

"Removing the early childhood network approval provisions will simplify the process for providers wanting to establish new services. This will ultimately reduce costs and waiting lists for early childhood services, supporting parents in finding ECEs where their children are happy, safe, and well cared for while they go to work or other activities.

"After regulatory changes are made, daily attendance data will be required from schools starting term one next year, and from selected kaupapa Māori education providers by mid-2025. High-quality and timely data will help parents, schools, and attendance-supporting parties identify absences promptly and decide on appropriate interventions to support students back into school.

"The future of New Zealand will be bleak if we are unable to transfer knowledge from one generation to the next. Research clearly links education to economic growth – both personal and national. These changes aim to give every New Zealand child every opportunity to succeed."