Education News & Articles

New Zealand Government Establishes School Property Agency for Safe and Sustainable Learning Environments

2 days ago | 102 views

The Government is establishing the New Zealand School Property Agency to address issues in the school property system, including high costs, delays, and inefficiencies. The agency will be a separate entity responsible for planning, building, and maintaining school properties, allowing the Ministry of Education to focus on education policy. The new agency aims to improve project delivery, transparency, and value for money in managing the school property portfolio, with a dedicated board overseeing informed investment decisions.

Tags: Government School Property Agency Kiwi kids Education Minister Erica Stanford Ministry of Education New Zealand School Property Agency Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop Ministerial Advisory Group Murray McCully Mark Binns

Auckland Schools Receive $120M Investment for New Classrooms and Schools

2 days ago | 156 views

The Government is investing over $120 million to build 137 new classrooms in Auckland, creating space for 3,014 additional student places in schools facing growing rolls. The investment includes cost-effective repeatable designs and offsite manufactured buildings to maximize funding impact. Additional projects include establishing new schools in Pōkeno and Chapel Downs to accommodate future growth and ensure a safe and conducive learning environment for students in Auckland.

Tags: Erica Stanford Simeon Brown Auckland classrooms students schools education Budget 25 funding infrastructure construction

Regional Polytechnic Revival: 10 Institutions Restored for Strong Communities & Economic Growth

5 days ago | 146 views

Ten polytechnics will be re-established from 1 January 2026, aiming to restore regional decision-making and support economic growth, according to Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds. The move is part of building a locally led and future-focused vocational education system, following extensive industry feedback. The new federation will include ten polytechnics, with Te Pūkenga acting as a transitional entity for up to a year to manage unallocated programmes and support the handover process.

Tags: Penny Simmonds Vocational Education Minister Ara Institute of Canterbury Eastern Institute of Technology Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology Southern Institute of Technology Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology Waikato Institute of Technology Unitec Institute of Technology Manukau Institute of Technology

Healthy School Lunch Programme: Positive Feedback Soars, Complaints Plummet, Taxpayer Savings of $130 Million

2 weeks ago | 160 views

Associate Education Minister David Seymour is pleased to see the Healthy School Lunch Programme Term 3 menu has received positive feedback from three quarters of students, and complaints have fallen by 92 per cent, while at the same time taxpayers are saving over $130 million. “The menu for Term 3 is being tested with students across the lower North Island. The result is 73 per cent positive feedback.

Tags: David Seymour Healthy School Lunch Programme Term 3 menu students taxpayers meals feedback schools Ministry savings

Healthy School Lunch Programme Term 3 Success: 73% Positive Feedback & $130M Taxpayer Savings

2 weeks ago | 146 views

Associate Education Minister David Seymour is pleased to see the Healthy School Lunch Programme Term 3 menu has received positive feedback from three quarters of students, and complaints have fallen by 92 per cent, while at the same time taxpayers are saving over $130 million. “The menu for Term 3 is being tested with students across the lower North Island. The result is 73 per cent positive feedback.

Tags: David Seymour Healthy School Lunch Programme students taxpayers meals feedback schools menu Term 3 savings

Expanding Access to Immersive Learning: New Classrooms for Māori Education

3 weeks ago | 490 views

The Government is enabling more tāmariki access to full immersion learning in safe, warm and dry classrooms. A $28 million investment will deliver 20 new classrooms across four Māori Medium and Kaupapa Māori Education kura and the commencement of a permanent site for a kura north of Auckland – Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāringaomatariki. The announcement was made at Takaparawhau, Bastion Point, during Matariki Hautapu celebrations with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.

Tags: Arowhenua Auckland Bastion point Erica stanford Hamilton Hautapu Hokianga Invercargill Kaikohe Kaiwaka Kaupapa māori Lower hutt Māori medium Māori new year Matarik Ngāringao Ngāringaomata Takaparawhau Te kura kaupapa māori Te wharekura

Otago students to benefit from more classrooms

1 month ago | 338 views

The Government’s ensuring hundreds more students in Otago benefit from new, safe, warm and dry classrooms. A $27 million investment into new infrastructure will help make sure schools meet the needs of their communities and gets ahead of new growth. It will support the construction of: Six new teaching spaces at Dunstan High School A twelve-teaching space expansion at Te Kura Whakatipu o Kawarau The investment is in addition to the purchase of a site at Ladies Mile in Queenstown last year, which will accommodate a new primary school in the area.

Tags: Canterbury Central north island Dunstan high school Erica stanford James meager Ladies mile Otago central lakes Queenstown South island Stanford Te kura whakatipu o kawara

Getting more trainee teachers into rural schools

1 month ago | 260 views

The Government’s ensuring some of New Zealand’s most isolated schools get the pipeline of teachers they need to teach the basics brilliantly. “For most new teachers, school placements play a significant role in deciding where they choose to teach once they qualify as a teacher. We know rural and isolated schools struggle to fill these rolls.

Tags: Erica stanford New zealand Onsite training programme Placements fund Principal Stanford

Consultation on ECE licensing criteria open

1 month ago | 305 views

Associate Education Minister David Seymour says that the Ministry of Education are now consulting on changing, merging, or removing approximately three-quarters of the Early Childhood Education (ECE) licensing criteria. “Earlier this year the ECE Sector Review instigated 15 changes to modernise and simplify regulations,” Mr Seymour says. “The changes to the ECE regulations show the power of a sector review.

Tags: David seymour Early childhood education Ministry for regulation Ministry of education Sector review Seymour Zealand

Modernising Early Childhood Education funding

1 month ago | 287 views

Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced an Early Childhood Education (ECE) Funding Review to ensure the funding system is simple, fair, and gets value for money. Mr Seymour has established an ECE Funding Review Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG), chaired by Linda Meade to carry out this review. It will report on it’s findings this time next year.

Tags: David seymour Early childhood education Education Linda mead New zealand Review ministerial advisory group Seymour

Attendance rates rose in Term 1 2025

1 month ago | 224 views

Associate Education Minister David Seymour says this Government has prioritised student attendance and as a result we’ve seen every term since Term 1 2024 record higher attendance than the same term of the previous year. In Term 1 of 2025 65. 9 per cent of students attended school regularly, an increase of 4.

Tags: David seymour Marlborough Ministry Ministry of education Response Seymour West coast