5-2 Support grant for provisionally registered teachers
Introduction
The Support Grant for Provisionally Registered Teachers (‘the grant’) provides additional funding for services that are subject to the Strategic Plan’s teacher registration targets.
The grant is to encourage and support permanently employed provisionally registered teachers in achieving full registration.
Eligible services
All chartered teacher-led services (including education and care services, kindergartens, and home-based care networks) are eligible for the grant if they:
- had one or more provisionally registered teachers permanently employed during the previous funding period AND
- will use the grant to support those provisionally registered teachers in working towards full registration status.
Ineligible services
Parent-led services are not eligible for the grant because they do not have to meet the teacher registration targets.
Which teachers are ‘provisionally registered’?
For the purposes of the grant, ‘provisionally registered teachers’ are all teachers who:
- hold the Diploma of Teaching (ECE) or another New Zealand Teachers Council approved ECE qualification (See Section 3-B-2 for a list of other qualifications) AND
- hold a New Zealand Teachers Council practising certificate that indicates the teacher holds provisional registration status.
Part-time teachers
Services may also claim the grant for permanently employed part-time provisionally registered teachers.
If a provisionally registered teacher is permanently employed on a part-time basis at more than one service, the teacher must elect which service can claim funding on their behalf.
Services claiming the grant for a permanently employed part-time provisionally registered teacher should retain information that identifies:
- that the teacher is permanently employed on a part-time basis AND
- that the grant is claimed for the individual teacher.
The provisionally registered teacher must sign (in full) this information.
Grant duration
The grant can be claimed for up to two years, or until the teacher becomes fully registered – whichever comes first.
Note: Because the grant is paid to services, a teacher that moves to employment by a different service may have the grant claimed on their behalf for a further two years (or until the teacher becomes fully registered), regardless of the period of the grant claimed by their previous employer.
Payment date
The grant is paid three times a year in arrears, in line with the Funding Cycle.
Please see your Funding Calendar for exact dates.
GST inclusive
All Support Grant payments are GST inclusive.
Claim process
Services claim the grant through completion of the RS7 Form at each funding period. Further details are available in Section 9-5.
| If a teacher... |
Then... |
| Started (or became provisionally registered) part-way through the month |
begin claiming at the beginning of the following month. |
| Left (or achieved full registration) part-way through the month |
claim for the whole month, but not for following months. |
| Is permanently employed on a part time basis |
claim the support grant as if the teacher was employed on a full-time basis. |
Expenditure guidelines
The grant must be used to provide support for provisionally registered teachers in working towards full registration status.
Specific expenditure of the grant is at the discretion of the service.
Possible uses for the grant include:
- release time for the provisionally registered teacher to undertake professional development, for example to attend professional development opportunities and meet with the supervising/tutor teacher
- payment of the costs associated with the services of a registered supervisor, attending professional development seminars, conferences and workshops as part of a registration advice and guidance programme
- resources or technology, for example, subscriptions to academic journals, the purchase of relevant research reports and conference papers
- release time to allow the supervising/tutor teacher to observe and meet with the provisionally registered teacher and to plan for the advice and guidance programme
- professional development to assist the supervising/tutor teacher in their role, for example, in developing mentoring skills.
Services should discuss the type of support with the individual teacher, with the aim of reaching agreement.
Pay units
The Support Grant is intended to support provisionally registered teachers employed by the individual service only.
Centralised use of funding should only take place with the full agreement of the service to which the Support Grant is due.
Services that believe they have received less than their full grant entitlement should contact their parent organisation/management contact.
Record-keeping requirements
Services that claim the grant must keep a register that clearly identifies:
- the name of each provisionally registered teacher claimed for
- the start/end dates for each individual provisionally registered teacher who is the subject of a claim.
Note: Services may choose to identify this information as part of their Staff Record (see Section 3-B-2 for further details of the Staff Record).
Reporting requirements
At a minimum all services must record the following in their annual financial statements:
- The number of grants received in the financial year.
- How (in general terms) the service has allocated the funding.
Audit requirements
Services must provide the following documentation to Ministry Investigating Officers on request:
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