The purpose of the is to support tamariki and rangatahi to engage successfully with education. The Regulations require that all tamariki and rangatahi in care have their educational or training needs assessed (taking into account their personal goals), that they are all enrolled in education or training appropriate for their age (or that they obtain employment), that their attendance is supported, and that their progress is monitored. The NCS Regulations also require tamariki and rangatahi in care to have support for play, recreation and community activities.
There is a well-established link between education and other areas of wellbeing. Education contributes to wider wellbeing through better employment and earning prospects. Data shows that rangatahi receiving a main benefit are 4.3 times more likely to have youth justice history, and 2.4 times more likely to “have interacted with Oranga Tamariki in childhood” than the general youth population.1 Higher levels of education are also associated with higher life expectancy and lower levels of smoking, obesity, disability and depression.2 We also know that achievement of a minimum of NCEA Level 2 by mothers is associated with higher educational attainment in their children.
Unsurprisingly, there is also an inverse correlation between missed education and educational achievement – declines in school attendance and engagement in learning can be expected to have major long-term consequences.3
Tamariki and rangatahi in care have poorer education outcomes than tamariki and rangatahi who are not in care. Data from the IDI shows that, for the year ending June 2021, tamariki and rangatahi in care had higher levels of stand-downs, truancy, and suspensions4; and lower NCEA level 2 achievement5 than tamariki and rangatahi of the same age who were not in care.
There have been improvements in the completion of individual assessments of educational need for and in the care of Oranga Tamariki over the last three years. However, Oranga Tamariki does not have assurance that these needs are being met or that services and supports are being delivered. In particular, Oranga Tamariki is not able to provide data on school attendance.
Tamariki and rangatahi in care often have high or very high educational needs, but we continue to hear about difficulties accessing educational supports for this group and a lack of clarity over who is responsible for funding. This, combined with negative attitudes from schools, means that tamariki and rangatahi in care may attend Alternative Education or have no educational placement. There is evidence to show that tamariki and rangatahi in care who attend Alternative Education often engage well. However, Alternative Education has worse educational outcomes than other places of learning, and the Education Review Office does not consider it to be a viable option for tamariki and rangatahi in care.
Evidence indicates that better outcomes can be achieved if more is done to support tamariki and rangatahi to have an education placement in school, and to remain in school.
As discussed in other parts of this report, there has been an improvement in assessment and plans being completed for and this year. Across the last three years, the Oranga Tamariki education needs lead indicator shows an increase in the proportion of tamariki and rangatahi whose education needs are addressed in their plans, from 78 percent to 92 percent. The biggest improvement occurred between 2021 and 2022.
This means that assessments and plans have been completed – it does not necessarily mean that the supports and services have been delivered.
78% - 2020/2021
89% - 2021/2022
92% - 2022/2023
This measures whether the education needs of tamariki and rangatahi are addressed in their plans.
68% - 2020/2021
65% - 2021/2022
60% - 2022/2023
Data shows a continuing decline in enrolment of tamariki in early childhood education. The drop is most marked for tamariki 0-4 years of age, with 43 percent of tamariki 0-4 years of age enrolled in a licenced ECE service or certified playgroup in 2022/2023. This was recorded at 58 percent the previous year.
We recognise that ECE is not compulsory, and that participation in ECE has declined generally across since 2020.6
96% - 2020/2021
96% - 2021/2022
94% - 2022/2023
Of the 94 percent of school enrolments, Oranga Tamariki data shows the majority (91 percent) enrolled at a registered school. Just under one percent were recorded as learning in the following settings: home school, correspondence school, and Alternative Education. For five percent of tamariki and rangatahi 6–15-years of age, there was no record.
Education is compulsory for all tamariki and rangatahi in this age group in Aotearoa, and this is reinforced by the for tamariki and rangatahi in care.7 Oranga Tamariki data shows that 3,329 out of 3,523 school-aged tamariki and rangatahi in its care had a record of an education provider in 2022/2023. Similar to data on enrolment with PHOs, it is unclear whether this means tamariki and rangatahi are enrolled at a school they currently attend, or whether the information is out of date.
We heard concerns about educational placements in our monitoring visits, where some tamariki and rangatahi are spending every weekday at Oranga Tamariki offices because no educational placement has been made available for them.
84% - 2020/20218
84% - 2021/2022
90% - 2022/2023
Oranga Tamariki case file analysis showed 90 percent of tamariki and rangatahi in its custody had opportunities for play and experiences that are appropriate to their interests and development.
As with previous years, Oranga Tamariki has not been able to provide data on whether an update had been obtained, at least once a term, on the regularity of school attendance.
90% - 2020/2021
85% - 2021/2022
86% - 2022/2023
Case file analysis shows that during the past three years, between one quarter and one third of tamariki and rangatahi in care had concerns raised about their educational progress and/or their educational goals not being achieved. Where these concerns were raised, Oranga Tamariki considered that social workers had taken sufficient action to address the issue in 86 percent of cases in 2022/2023.
85% - 2020/2021
86% - 2021/2022
86% - 2022/2023
Data shows that 86 percent of rangatahi aged 16 years of age and older were either enrolled at a registered school or tertiary education organisation, or had obtained employment, during the reporting period.
Of this group, four percent were on an apprenticeship or training course in 2022/2023, and three percent were in employment.
Ten percent of rangatahi in this age group did not have their education or employment status recorded.
In our previous Experiences of Care in reports, we heard that government agencies are not consistently working well together at a local level to meet the educational needs of and in care. We heard this again this year.
For this year’s report, we asked the Ministry of Education what actions have been taken during the reporting period to prioritise tamariki and rangatahi in care. We were told that the Ministry “does not collect data on children in care or use care status to prioritise learners for individual services”, and that support is allocated “according to learning need”.9 However, the Ministry told us that it is developing an information sharing agreement with Oranga Tamariki “to better understand need and consider more targeted approaches”, and that work is underway on specific issues – such as high needs learners, stand-downs and suspensions – which disproportionately affect tamariki and rangatahi in care.10
We were also told of specific initiatives that contribute to improved educational outcomes under the Oranga Tamariki Action Plan (OTAP). These include the appointment of a Lead Education Advisor for Children in Care in Auckland, a Ministry response to the Education Review Office’s review of learning in residential care, and the development of agreed processes and practices with Oranga Tamariki. Our future reports will look at whether these initiatives are making a difference.
During our monitoring visits, we heard of some and not having educational placements. This is because schools are unwilling to accept them, and/or they don’t meet the eligibility for Alternative Education (for example, if they are too young) and/or because it takes too long to secure a placement in Alternative Education. This is likely to account for some of the tamariki and rangatahi who are not identified as having been enrolled at a school.
For the older age group of 16 to 20 years of age, education is not compulsory in the general population. However, the require Oranga Tamariki to assist rangatahi to be enrolled in education or training or to obtain employment. Oranga Tamariki data shows that 86 percent of this group was enrolled at a registered school or tertiary education organisation or had obtained employment during the 2022/2023 year (1,138 out of 1,317 rangatahi).
During our monitoring visits in 2022/2023, we heard from Oranga Tamariki kaimahi that they are concerned about the tamariki and rangatahi who do not have education, employment or training placements. They described how some tamariki and rangatahi have no option but to sit in Oranga Tamariki offices every day because there is no educational or training placement available for them. We heard this is also an issue for under 16-year-olds.
“Very common in residence [group home in the community]. If our kid is not going to school – he will be in the office. No kids are to be in our house between 9 and 3 – they need to be at school. So that’s why they end up in the OT office. Because of what they do when they are at the office – they are free in the office.”
“Too often we have rangatahi on the third floor [of an OT site] – they have been excluded from school and we don’t know what to do with them. We don’t have youth workers we don’t have resource workers. Sometimes our family group homes they stay in – they don’t keep them there for the day – so they come here for the day, and it goes on for quite a while.”
“Why isn’t there a system where they engage in some type of programme – rather than sit in a cold room in OT doing nothing. Something that teaches them social skills – but nothing is happening cos the social worker is so busy. There is no programme.” “If a family wasn’t taking their child to school – the child could be uplifted.”
We heard consistently from kaimahi at Oranga Tamariki that schools often have negative perceptions of tamariki and rangatahi in care. We also heard this can sometimes lead to schools stigmatising these tamariki and rangatahi, and/or being unwilling to enrol them at all.
This was also acknowledged as a concern by a small number of kaimahi from the Ministry of Education.
“Some schools work hard not to accept them, they are not welcomed, they are seen as disruptors.”
However, we heard from a Ministry of Education kaimahi who suggested they would be able to support Oranga Tamariki in these instances.
“One of the things that really concerns me is how difficult it is for Oranga Tamariki social workers to enrol kids in school. They don’t quite believe schools are going to be welcoming and sometimes they are not. And if they are not, they don’t ask us [MoE] for help. So, they will accept a very small welcome mat from school. And some schools believe they [tamariki/rangatahi] won’t be suited for the mainstream learning environment and I’m not sure where that judgement comes from so then social workers have to find somewhere for that child to be during the day. But they just need to ask us to support them with that!”
What we heard is that schools are not always there for tamariki and rangatahi in care. In some cases, this may be because of the attitude of the school, and in others, it may be because there are challenges in getting supports in places so that tamariki and rangatahi can successfully attend.
The NCS Regulations require Oranga Tamariki to take reasonable steps to ensure that all tamariki and rangatahi in its care attend school. It must also obtain updates on attendance at least once a term.
Ministry of Education data shows that school attendance has been declining over recent years across , and particularly due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It is for this reason that the Ministry launched its Engagement in Learning Strategy in 2022, which includes work “to better understand and respond to the barriers to attendance and engagement for ākonga11 who come into contact with Oranga Tamariki. The Ministry of Education will work with Oranga Tamariki to identify and provide the data and information schools need to better support this group of ākonga”.
Monitoring attendance is crucial to understanding the extent of the problem, and whether strategies for encouraging attendance are working. It is frustrating that in three years of monitoring the care standards, Oranga Tamariki remains unable to report on levels of attendance for the tamariki in its care (in comparison, the Open Home Foundation is aware of attendance, and is starting to receive this information from schools). It is hoped that this ongoing work with the Ministry of Education will resolve this issue, so that Oranga Tamariki can get a better understanding of engagement with school.
Although we again heard from some tamariki and rangatahi that Covid-19 had impacted their engagement in learning, we also heard some positive stories. One new theme to emerge from our monitoring visits in 2022/2023 is that tamariki and rangatahi Māori told us that schools are supporting them to connect to . We heard this is because of schools’ practice and teachers’ attitudes.
This is supported by the 2021/2022 Te Tohu o te Ora survey of tamariki and rangatahi in Oranga Tamariki care, which found that 79 percent of tamariki and rangatahi Māori said they had a chance to learn about their culture (1.6 times more likely than other groups). Although we cannot draw any firm conclusions, we recognise that there have been several initiatives in recent years to support te ao Māori in education. They include, for example, changes to the New Zealand history curriculum, cultural competency professional development for teachers, and wider efforts to revitalise te reo Māori.
Analysis from the Social Wellbeing Agency shows that tamariki and rangatahi in care are likely to have evidence of high needs that are likely to impact on their learning.12 Despite this, we heard again this year that there are often disputes between Oranga Tamariki and the Ministry of Education over which agency will fund educational supports for tamariki and rangatahi in care.
Kaimahi at Oranga Tamariki told us:
“Am not saying it’s the MoE people, but just wanting to hear, whose responsibility is it. When a child has learning needs, they expect us to provide a teacher aide, is that ours? Isn’t it theirs?”
“We’ve been supported by teacher aide, but only if Ministry of Education is involved. We can only fund if MoE is involved, and if they don’t get funded, they miss out on the teacher aide. I see this as [an] issue where [the] school is looking at us for the answer, and they say, we are not taking the referral if Oranga Tamariki don’t fund it as well.”
“Education wants everything funded by us [Oranga Tamariki]. External agencies expect us to fund it all [supports and services] and that we have all this money. This is not true.”
“We have told Education that this is your area so you need to provide funding but they won’t have a bar of it. Where does all the education funding go. Where has the $40 million that education received for that funding gone?”
Kaimahi at the Ministry of Education told us:
“I would love to share more with Oranga Tamariki how schools access funding for teacher aides and extra resources. It’s a big process to get teacher aides, they don’t fall out of the sky.”
“I put one [a teacher aide] in place and I am waiting for funding to come through. Oranga Tamariki have agreed to fund it. It was put in last year. I have been chasing up. We have put the support in for the tamariki as it was needed. In the meantime we are funding that, waiting for Oranga Tamariki to do what they said they would.”
We asked Oranga Tamariki and the Ministry of Education about any changes to funding supports such as teacher/student aides. Oranga Tamariki told us that its student aide support funding is intended to complement existing support funded by the Ministry of Education to help meet educational needs. There is no longer a ring-fenced Oranga Tamariki budget for student aides, but Oranga Tamariki funding can be used to “top up, not replace, existing [Ministry of Education] support or fill a gap while awaiting other supports”.13
The Ministry of Education has pointed out that not all learners with additional needs require additional funding from the Ministry of Education. Operational funding received by schools, including a Support for Inclusion component, is intended to support all learners, including those with additional needs. The Ministry also states that learning support funding, which is additional, should not be a prerequisite for enrolment or attendance. Teacher aides are one of most common supports that are used and/or requested, but they should be considered as one of a number of responses to remove barriers to learning.
As discussed below, Open Home Foundation also finds it necessary to fund educational supports for tamariki and rangatahi with high needs, sometimes on a temporary basis to enable an educational placement to commence or continue. From what we heard, processes that Open Home Foundation has put in place make it easier for its kaimahi to access funding, when compared to those of Oranga Tamariki.
It is clear there is a lack of clarity and consistency over how supports are funded. This is a cause of frustration for both schools and social workers and is likely to contribute to issues raised earlier about tamariki and rangatahi not being accepted into schools. Difficulties in accessing support for tamariki and rangatahi has remained a consistent and strong theme over the three years of our monitoring. Given that tamariki and rangatahi in care often have high or very high educational needs, and given the importance of keeping tamariki and rangatahi in school, clarity over who funds support, alongside simple systems to access it, is urgently required.
Alternative Education caters for tamariki and rangatahi who are at risk of disengaging, or who have already disengaged, from school. It is usually offered to tamariki and rangatahi aged 13 years of age and above, and aims to provide learning opportunities to support them back into mainstream education, training or work.
Oranga Tamariki data reports that five percent of 16-year-olds and above were learning in Alternative Education in the 2022/2023 reporting period.
We heard in our monitoring visits that some schools will not accept tamariki and rangatahi in care, leaving Alternative Education as one of very few options for an educational placement.14
“We have one child, a 14-year-old that is not welcome at any school in the [region] anymore. We have explored every option, with no success with MoE being able to help, the only thing we can do is home school.”
“Each school is very different. Some schools don’t want to take our kids, hence, why they are enrolled in private schools. There are big, big disparities at how our kids are accepted – mostly not accepted in mainstream schools when they find out Oranga Tamariki is involved.”
The Education Review Office (ERO) has reported on a survey showing that one in six (17 percent) tamariki and rangatahi in Alternative Education who completed the survey had been in the care of Oranga Tamariki. The Social Wellbeing Agency has found that almost one in five (19 percent) careexperienced rangatahi participate in Alternative Education at some point in their lives, compared with two percent of the general population of the same age.15 Sixty-eight percent of tamariki and rangatahi in Alternative Education are Māori, and 63 percent are male.16
Young people in Alternative Education are the most highly disengaged from mainstream education and have high and often complex needs.17 They are referred to Alternative Education due to behaviour, attendance issues, alienation from school and referrals made by Youth Justice and Oranga Tamariki.
The ERO survey found that rangatahi in care were more engaged in, and more likely to enjoy, their learning in Alternative Education (80 percent of those in care) compared to those not in care (66 percent). Seventy-one percent of survey respondents in care who were in Alternative Education said they see education as being important for their future (compared with 59 percent of those not in care).18
Despite this, Alternative Education is associated with worse educational outcomes than other educational settings. For example, fewer than one in 10 rangatahi from Alternative Education achieve NCEA Level 2 or higher (nine percent), compared to eight out of 10 rangatahi in mainstream school. ERO describes Alternative Education as poorly resourced with little oversight from contract-holding schools, little accountability for educational outcomes, and few registered teachers (only one in five educators in Alternative Education is a registered teacher). Funding per place in Alternative Education was found to be less than half of the funding available for some small secondary schools,19 although we recognise that Budget 2023 funding took effect on 1 January 2024. This new funding increases the annual per-place funding rate by 30 percent.
When tamariki and rangatahi do succeed at Alternative Education, it is due to the elements of the model that do work. These include small class sizes, having the same educator throughout the day, flexibility to provide a different education, and having kaimahi with experience, aptitude, and commitment to working with tamariki and rangatahi, and who act as role models.
We spoke with some tamariki and rangatahi attending Alternative Education during our monitoring visits and heard some accounts of their experience.
“Yeah it’s [alternative education school] alright. There are just too many troublemakers there.”
“I want to be around everyone else. Not being with kids [in Alternative Education] that are annoying as fuck. I told my social worker I want to be at a school with everyone.”
We also heard from both rangatahi and kaimahi about the lengthy, drawn-out processes for securing an Alternative Education placement and that this can risk further disengagement from learning and education.
“It took her four months to get me into a [alternative education] school and I was just sitting around doing nothing.”
“There are lengthy processes to get them support. Sometimes tamariki have been out of education for two years, it is too long. They get haututū [mischievous] because there is not an alternative for them and not in a timely manner.”
“A lot of our young people struggle with engagement in training and school. MoE and [alternative] schools, there is a drawn-out process. There seems at times a lack of willingness to positively engage with tamariki and rangatahi.”
We note that ERO has recommended the Alternative Education model be reformed to meet the needs of the most disengaged tamariki and rangatahi who need an alternative to mainstream schooling. ERO does not consider Alternative Education to be a viable option for learners in care. Its review demonstrates that tamariki and rangatahi are better off if they can remain in mainstream school. As we already note, removing current barriers to accessing support (such as teacher aides) for tamariki and rangatahi is likely to help with this.
However, for some tamariki and rangatahi in care, Alternative Education and other learning pathways such as home school and correspondence school may be the only options for education. When we consider the positive levels of engagement with Alternative Education, there is an opportunity to improve education if access and quality to this service can be improved. By association, this can improve other life outcomes for tamariki and rangatahi in care.
N/A - 2020/2021
84% - 2021/2022
88% - 2022/2023
Eighty-eight percent of plans took into account educational or training needs. This is an improvement on last year.
N/A - 2020/2021
83% - 2021/2022
100% - 2022/2023
N/A - 2020/2021
100% - 2021/2022
100% - 2022/2023
Open Home Foundation reports 100 percent ECE enrolment for 0-4 years of age in its care (an improvement from 83 percent the previous year), as well as 100 percent enrolment for tamariki five years of age in either ECE or a registered school (unchanged from the previous year). ECE or school attendance is not a legal requirement for tamariki in this age group, but is described in the as a requirement “where it is in the best interests of a child”.1
N/A - 2020/2021
96% - 2021/2022
94% - 2022/2023
In 2022/2023, 94 percent of tamariki and aged 6-15 years of age were enrolled at a registered school.
N/A - 2020/2021
100% - 2021/2022
98% - 2022/2023
N/A - 2020/2021
100% - 2021/2022
100% - 2022/2023
N/A - 2020/2021
98% - 2021/2022
100% - 2022/2023
Although not all plans showed evidence of taking into account the educational needs of tamariki and rangatahi, Open Home Foundation also provided data that shows that all tamariki and rangatahi received support to address their needs, such as education-related costs or additional support.
N/A - 2020/2021
14% - 2021/2022
39% - 2022/2023
Open Home Foundation reports an improvement in monitoring school attendance during the reporting period. For 39 percent of tamariki and rangatahi enrolled at school in 2022/2023, an update on school attendance was obtained four times a year (up from 14 percent the previous year). The mean number of times per year was 2.6.
N/A - 2020/2021
25% - 2021/2022
61% - 2022/2023
Open Home Foundation data shows that it obtained a written update from education providers on the educational progress of tamariki and rangatahi in its care at an average rate of twice a year (61 percent had a written update each term in 2022/23, up from 25 percent the previous year).
N/A - 2020/2021
85% - 2021/2022
77% - 2022/2023
77 percent of tamariki had opportunities for play and experiences. This is eight percent fewer than last year.
N/A - 2020/2021
55% - 2021/2022
76% - 2022/2023
Open Home Foundation reports that 76 percent of tamariki and rangatahi in its care had appropriate support (including financial support) to participate in cultural activities. This is an increase from 55 percent in the previous year.
Open Home Foundation reports that 93 percent of rangatahi 16-18 years of age were enrolled with a registered school or tertiary education organisation in 2022/2023. This is an improvement from 78 percent the previous year. For those not enrolled with a school or tertiary education organisation, Open Home Foundation also reports that 100 percent of this age group had been assisted to obtain employment. Although caring for a small number of rangatahi, Open Home Foundation has achieved full compliance with the NCS Regulation around education, employment and training for the over 16 cohort.
N/A - 2020/2021
78% - 2021/2022
93% - 2022/2023
N/A - 2020/2021
56% - 2021/2022
100% - 2022/2023
During our 2022/2023 monitoring visits, we spoke with a small number of , , and caregivers from Open Home Foundation. Due to the nature of our monitoring visits, most of the Open Home Foundation people we spoke to in the 2022/2023 reporting period were in partnered care. This means that Oranga Tamariki has the custody of tamariki and rangatahi and entrusts their day-to-day care to Open Home Foundation.
The tamariki, rangatahi, whānau and caregivers we spoke to were generally positive about the supports they receive from Open Home Foundation, with some saying that the tamariki and rangatahi they care for have teacher aides thanks to Open Home Foundation. However, as discussed earlier, some also spoke about difficult relationships between schools and Oranga Tamariki.
Open Home Foundation leadership told us:
“Even teacher aide funding has been cut back. We pay for full time teacher aide to keep them in school.”
We heard from Open Home Foundation kaimahi that they have good relationships with other agencies. They told us that good communication and collaborative relationships with other professionals and agencies drives positive outcomes for tamariki, rangatahi and their whānau.
However, Open Home Foundation kaimahi in one discussed a lack of communication between themselves and local schools. We heard that this has meant those schools have a limited understanding of the needs of the tamariki and rangatahi in Open Home Foundation care, and therefore limited ability to support them.
Open Home Foundation kaimahi also spoke about the difficulties they faced when Oranga Tamariki and the Ministry of Education do not agree on their respective responsibilities for supporting and funding tamariki and rangatahi in care. We discussed this with the leadership team at Open Home Foundation and heard that Open Home Foundation has limited options when tamariki and rangatahi are in partnered care. This is because Oranga Tamariki takes responsibility for accessing funding. Where Open Home Foundation has custody, it can move quickly to fund educational supports to ensure that tamariki and rangatahi do not miss out on their education.
A new theme emerged this year around limited funding for services and supports and the lengthy, drawn-out assessment processes to access funding for disabled tamariki and rangatahi, as well as those with high and complex needs. We heard that some funding streams are inaccessible or are not applicable to certain conditions, such as Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD),2 or have lengthy application processes. Open Home Foundation spoke about how they must find money to provide supports in the meantime.
“Another child who has 10 diagnoses including a cleft palate isn’t able to access any funding, cannot go to the toilet by herself etc. We had to get the money out of our own budget for a teacher aide – should be funded by MoE – feel sorry for OT, but MoE won’t pay for anything it’s absolutely insane.”
“The assessments take years, MoE doesn’t recognise FASD, can’t understand, MoE won’t fund if FASD. Took months and months, good side, when we do have a TA, its good. Hoping they are getting good support and that they share their findings.”
Open Home Foundation kaimahi also spoke about the importance of teacher aides in supporting tamariki and rangatahi, and the difference they make in terms of outcomes for those tamariki and rangatahi. However, they also told us about difficulties in accessing teacher aides with the necessary skills and training to support tamariki and rangatahi with complex needs.
“We often hire a teacher aide; the school will often say it’s difficult for them to find anyone. We’re looking for different skill sets depending on the child. What is it, it is quite specialised. If we get the right person, then it’s life changing. Sometimes schools get funding for that child, but it’s not used for the child.”
“Even teacher aide funding has been cut back. We pay for full time teacher aide to keep them in school. We were doing a safety planning with a mum who has a young boy who has trauma, he runs away from school can’t manage himself, school rings her to pick him up from school. Mum is stressing. We went to OT and said we can pay for a person to be with him at school and to help him. He is thriving, he’s believing he can now do things himself and is proud he is able to do things. Unfortunately, the teacher aide left and now the boy is back to his old behaviours. School has asked mum to take the boy to another school.”
“The [teacher aide] funding is being cut and it’s sad because the child is now back to his normal behaviours. He now has another teacher aide an 18-year-old with no training or trauma training etc.”
This is the same theme that we heard for tamariki and rangatahi in Oranga Tamariki care. This issue of funding is important to clarify so that tamariki and rangatahi have the best chance to stay in mainstream school and improve potential outcomes.
1 Ministry of Social Development Insights Reporting Series, ‘Young people 16-24 years old’, https://.govt.nz/documents/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/insights-reporting-series-docs/insightsreporting-series-young-people.pdf
2 https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/206026/education-and-health-report.pdf (accessed 21 September 2023).
3 Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy 2021/2022 Annual Report.
4 In the 5-17 year age group, 11 percent of and in care had been marked as having stand-down days, 3 percent had suspension spells, and 11 percent had truancy days. In the general population, these figures were all below 1 percent for the same age group.
5 In the 14-17 year age group, 6 percent of rangatahi in care had achieved NCEA level 2 or higher, compared with 15 percent of the general population. However, NCEA level 2 or higher is achieved by 80 percent of the general population by 18 years of age – most rangatahi in care have ‘aged out’ by this age.
6 As recorded in June 2022. The Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy 2021/22 Annual Report states that the Covid-19 pandemic is thought to be the predominant reason for this decline.
7 38(1) and 38(2) state that young persons 6-15 years of age must be enrolled at a registered school, and ‘If any dispute arises about the enrolment of a child or young person in a particular school, the chief executive must take steps to resolve the dispute, including, where necessary, bringing in legal proceedings’.
8 The methodology used by Oranga Tamariki changed slightly after 2020/2021 so this figure is not directly comparable to later years.
9 Correspondence dated 26 September 2023.
10 Oranga Tamariki data shows that 27 percent of the in-care population has been stood down from school in their
lifetime, compared with 1.8 percent of the general population. 80 percent of the youth justice population has been stood down, compared with 4.5 percent of the general population in the same age group.
11 learners
12 Children with additional learning needs, Social Wellbeing Agency, September 2023. https://swa.govt.nz/publications/ Children-with-additional-learning-needs
13 Oranga Tamariki response to supplementary questions, September 2023.
14 Other options include home schooling and correspondence school, both of which require support from an adult as well as a suitable venue during the day.
15 ERO data is based on the experience of learners in the care of Oranga Tamariki, who were learning in Alternative ducation when they responded to the survey. The Social Wellbeing Agency data looked at whether tamariki and rangatahi in the care of Oranga Tamariki had attended Alternative Education at some point in their lives.
16 The Social Wellbeing Agency found that Alternative Education participants are 2.8 times as likely to be Māori as nonparticipants. In its study, 51 percent of non-participants in Alternative Education in the sample were male, compared to 63 percent of Alternative Education participants. https://swa.govt.nz/assets/Document-Library/Experiences-andoutcomes-of-Alternative-Education-participants-v3.pdf
17 The Social Wellbeing Agency has identified that nearly half (47 percent) of the in-care subset of tamariki born between 2009 and 2012 has evidence of high needs inside or outside the education system. 38 percent of the same in-care subset have received individualised learning support within the education system, and 27 percent have evidence (from parents and carers in the health system) of needs that are likely to impact their learning (using data from outside the education system).
18 An Alternative Education? Support or our most disengaged young people Te Ihuwaka I Education Evaluation Centre 2023.
19 An Alternative Education? Support or our most disengaged young people Te Ihuwaka I Education Evaluation Centre 2023.
1 Section 36, NCS Regulations.
2 The Ministry of Education states that its funding for learning support is based on evidence of need, and not on
diagnosis of a particular condition.