Funding of Primary Schools

Introduction

Principals are referred to the Ministry of Education’s Funding, Staffing and Allowances Handbook. Updates of the sections of the Handbook are sent out to schools. The Handbook should be kept up to date at all times and adjustments should be recorded in the Version Control log at the front of each Handbook.

The most up-to-date version of the Handbook is accessible on the Ministry website.

E-mail enquiries can also be directed to resourcing@minedu.govt.nz.

Calculation Bases

There are a number of different calculation bases for funding. Some funding such as the Ongoing and Reviewable Resourcing Scheme (ORRS), English for Speakers of Other Languages, and Maori Language Resourcing are based on verified numbers of actual students that attract the funding. Otherwise, the two most important calculation bases are Funding Rolls and Decile Ratings.

Funding Rolls

The roll numbers at July are used to calculate the funding entitlement for the following year (with a new entrant component - where relevant - factored in).

During the school year, returns of the actual roll at March and July are used to adjust the entitlement (this methodology differs slightly for intermediate and composite schools).

The system also has mechanisms for dealing with extraordinary roll growth.

The funding roll is used to calculate most categories of Operations Funding (see below).

Decile Rating

This is a census-based indicator used to measure the extent to which schools draw from particular socio-economic communities. Every state and state integrated school is ranked into deciles (10% groupings) on the basis of the indicator.

The indicator is based on census data for households with school-aged children in each school's catchment area.

Decile ratings determine the allocation of Targeted Funding for Educational Achievement (TFEA), the Special Education Grant (SEG) and Decile Discretionary Funding.

Decile changes are made every five years, based on the previous year's census information on a school community's socio-economic make-up. The most recent decile changes were announced in September 2007 as a result of the Ministry's review of information from the 2006 census. In this process, schools which move up the decile scale lose money from their budgets.

Schools are able to request a change to the ranking allocated. Read more about how decile changes occur

Entitlement and Installment Notices

An initial entitlement notice is issued in mid-September for the following year and shows the school's provisional entitlement for the main operational funding components (see below) for the following year.

Some funding such as RTLB funding does not appear on the entitlement notice but appears as adjustments on the quarterly installment notice.

A new entitlement notice is issued if any of the main operational funding components change (as they may when funding is recalculated in accordance with the actual roll).

The main operational funding components are paid quarterly, in advance (as are a number of other funding components and Supplementary Entitlements). An installment notice is issued immediately prior to the payment of each quarterly installment.

"Area Histories" relevant to property funding (give link to Property section of kit) is also included in the entitlement notice.

Categories of Funding

Funding is divided broadly into Operational Funding and Supplementary Entitlements.

Operational Funding

Operational Funding is the Government funding received to implement the school charter and to pay for the running of the school. This funding does not include the salaries of entitlement teachers, property or other large capital items. It consists of a range of set components but boards of trustees are nevertheless free to decide how the money should be spent. Subject to a number of conditions set out in the Funding, Staffing and Allowances Handbook, and subject to the provisions of the Primary Teachers', Deputy Principals, Assistant Principals and Other Unit Holders' Collective Agreement. Operational Funding can be used to employ extra teaching staff.

The Components of Operational Funding are as follows:

Base Funding
Base funding addresses the fact that small schools have different economies of scale than larger schools. Above a set roll size, schools receive no base funding.

Per-pupil Funding
For most schools, this component forms the bulk of operational funding. The rates are universal but are set at levels (for primary schools Y1 Y6, and Y7 - Y8) to reflect the costs of educating pupils at those levels.

Relief Teacher Funding
This is funding to assist boards of trustees with the payment of relief teachers' salaries. It is based on entitlement staffing and adjusted following the settlement of teachers' collective agreements. It is also adjusted (automatically) as staffing entitlement changes.

Vandalism
This is paid on a per-pupil rate across five risk ratings ranging from "low" to "extreme".

Targeted Funding For Educational Achievement (TFEA)
This is funding aimed at lowering barriers to learning faced by students from low socio-economic communities. It is targeted on a decile rating basis. Decile 10 schools receive no TFEA funding.

Special Education Grant (SEG)
This is funding to assist students with moderate special educational needs such as learning and behavioural difficulties. It has base and decile-rated per-pupil subcomponents.

Property Maintenance
This is funding for property maintenance expected over a ten-year cycle. It is based on land and building areas of each school and includes (for schools other than integrated schools) a component for minor capital works.

Heat Light and Water
This funding is assessed on a school-by-school basis and takes into account factors such as school size and location.

Y7 - Y8 Technology Classes in Other Schools
Funding for capital and related costs associated with technology classes is included in the per-pupil funding for schools with year 7 and 8 pupils. For schools where pupils attend classes at other (host) schools, this is to cover per-pupil fees that need to be negotiated with the host school.

Supplementary Entitlements
Not all schools qualify for all of these funding components.
The Components of the Supplementary Entitlements are as follows:

Māori Language Programme Funding
This funding is to provide additional support for Māori students enrolled in Māori language programmes at four immersion levels, ranging from level 4 (less than 30% immersion) through level 1 (above 81% immersion).

School Contents Risk Management
Schools must have all school assets other than land and buildings insured and have the option of withdrawing from the Ministry's Risk Management Scheme (for which levy deductions are automatically deducted from quarterly instalments of operational funding) and may gain approval to adopt an alternative approach in which case the levy deduction are not made.

Targeted Funding for Isolation (TFI)
This funding is to address the additional costs faced by schools in isolated areas with respect to accessing goods and services and takes the form of additional operational funding. It is calculated using a base grant plus a formula involving an isolation index rating in association with roll size and a per-pupil grant.

Special Education Funding

In Regular Schools
Special education students are counted as part of the total roll and funded at the appropriate per-pupil rates.

Class Funding In Special Schools
This is funding designed to fund additional classes where the number of teachers generated by ORRS (see below) is higher than the number of classes actually funded.

Resource Teachers Learning and Behaviour (RTLB)
RTLB funding is paid to the nominated school of a cluster: there is a standard administration grant per position, plus a travel grant (at 4 different rates), year 11 to 13 funding, and learning support funding which has roll size and decile rating determinants.

Special Education Resource Teachers
These are attachment and travel grants maintained as a transition measure and are not paid for positions generated by the ORRS scheme.

Special Education Equipment
Students with special needs are eligible for consideration for funding for specialised equipment. Advice is available from technology coordinators, Group Special Education, Ministry of Education.

Other Special Education Funding

Ongoing and Reviewable Rescourcing Scheme ORRS

This funding meets the employment costs of teacher aides required to meet the needs of students verified by the Ministry as having very high or high ongoing needs. It may also cover service purchase costs of specialists such as psychologists and therapists and administrative and material resource costs.

High Health Needs
This funding covers care and supervision for students with high health needs by support staff and is funded on a case-by-case agreement basis.

Enhanced Programme Fund
This funding is for programmes for moderate needs students and will be paid to schools or clusters of schools with moderate needs students once criteria and guidelines have been developed.

Attached Teacher Grant
This is funding for base schools to cover development and administrative costs for attached teachers such as Resource Teachers of Maori Literacy.

Schools with attached Resource Teachers: Literacy (RTLit) and Supplementary Learning Support teachers receive administrative grants at the same rate as RTLBs (see above).

Itinerant Teacher Travel
This is funding for officially approved itinerant positions (including RTLit positions): funding relates to distances travelled and whether the travel is rural or urban.

New Classrooms
This is funding to assist schools to equip new classrooms generated by increases to roll or staffing entitlement.

Out-of-Hours Music and Art Classes Y1 - Y8
This funding provides additional professional tuition not normally available within schools to help students further their education in arts and music.

Normal and Country Model Schools
Additional per-pupil funding is provided to cover costs associated with the operation of normal and country model schools.

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)

ESOL funding provides support for children with English language needs in mainstream classes and is targeted through small-group and classroom-based programmes.

When the Funding is Paid

The main operational funding components are paid quarterly, in advance (as are a number of other funding components and Supplementary Entitlements). Other funding components are paid on a different cycle or on a "by claim" basis.

Planning is underway to bring most, if not all payments into a uniform funding pattern.

Other Sources of Information

Ministry of Education Funding, Staffing and Allowances Handbook - www.minedu.govt.nz/goto/resourcinghandbook