Principals ‘deeply alarmed’ as school nurses could be slashed by half
Monday, 23 March 2026
School nurses on the frontline of Porirua’s secondary schools could be cut by more than half within two years, in what principals warn is “a withdrawal of essential healthcare from a vulnerable population”.
The School Based Health Service (SBHS), delivered by Tū Ora Compass Health, is under review amid funding pressure – with staffing set to drop from 8.7 full time staff to just 4.1 from 2027 if no additional funding is found.
Principals from four Porirua secondary schools and Tawa College say the potential cuts are already casting a long shadow.
In a letter to Health NZ, the heads of Porirua College, Aotea College, Bishop Viard College, Tawa College, and Mana College warned they were “deeply alarmed” by the proposed reductions and called for urgent government intervention.
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“Currently, our school nurses are a critical lifeline for our rangatahi,” the principals wrote.
“In Porirua and Tawa, the demand for these services is already significantly oversubscribed. Our health clinics manage complex presentations including chronic physical conditions, acute mental health crises, and social stressors that directly impact a student’s ability to engage in education.”
They said the cuts would worsen health inequities. “Our students rely on SBHS because of the barriers – financial, transport, and systemic – they face in accessing primary care elsewhere.”
The principals warned that reducing the service would place increased pressure on secondary care. “Without the preventative care and early intervention provided by school nurses, we anticipate an increase in Emergency Department presentations at Kenepuru and Wellington Hospitals,” they wrote.
And they underlined the expected impact on education. “Health and education are inextricably linked. Students who cannot access health support on-site are more likely to be absent, underperform or self-harm,” wrote Jason White (Aotea College), Ragne Maxwell (Porirua College), Chris Theobald (Bishop Viard College), Andrew Savage (Tawa College), and Jeff Chapman (Mana College).
The principals also highlighted the funding pressures facing Tū Ora Compass Health, a public health organisation which has absorbed deficits for years to keep services running.
“Stagnant funding in the face of rising salary costs and increased student numbers has made the current model unsustainable,” they wrote. “While we appreciate Tū Ora’s commitment to maintaining levels through the 2026 school year, the uncertainty regarding 2027 creates a significant risk to our long-term pastoral care planning.”
The principals sought a commitment for a “funding uplift”. It should reflect “the actual cost of delivery and the true level of need in our communities. Our rangatahi deserve a health system that shows up where they are.”
Labour’s Mana MP Barbara Edmonds said she was “gutted” by the proposal.
“The Government promised that there would be no cuts to front line services,” she said. “The school nursing programme is a front line health service that supports some of our most high needs areas in Porirua. It is yet again another example of a broken promise.”
Tū Ora Compass Health chief executive Justine Thorpe said demand for the service had grown significantly in both volume and complexity, with more repeat visits and rising need for mental health and psychosocial support.
But while the workload has intensified, funding has not kept pace.
Thorpe said the programme operates within a capped, nationally set funding model that has failed to reflect rising costs, increasing school rolls, and higher clinical acuity.
“Tū Ora has absorbed these shortfalls over several years, but we can no longer sustain them without additional investment … while also ensuring the health and safety of staff managing high clinical workloads,” she said.
The organisation has committed to covering the funding gap through to the end of 2026 to avoid immediate disruption, but beyond that, services will need to be scaled back unless funding increases.
Health New Zealand’s group manager for funding and integration north Deborah Davies said about $604,710 a year is allocated to the Porirua programme, an increase of around $97,000 since 2021.
“Health New Zealand recognises the important role School Based Health Services play in supporting the health and wellbeing of rangatahi,” she said.
“We continue to work with Tū Ora Compass Health to deliver the service within the existing funding envelope.”
She said funding is allocated based on school populations and need, but local providers determine how services are delivered within that budget.