Education upset over Budget 2024

Friday, 31 May 2024

“Education is the great liberator. It is the great equaliser,” Finance Minister Nicola Willis said while delivering Budget 2024.

The education sector will receive nearly $3 billion in new funding over the next four years, but leaders say the money could be spent more wisely.

Budget 2024 has promised about $2.9b in new funding to improve student outcomes, over half of which will be poured into building, maintaining and upgrading property.

Other areas of investment include $516.4 million for schools and early childhood education providers, $477.6m to continue the free school lunch scheme, $153m to establish charter schools, and $67m to support structured literacy.

Stuff's Tova O'Brien talks to Finance Minister Nicola Willis.

Two thirds of new spending overall was focused on education, alongside health and law and order, Finance Minister Nicola Willis said on Thursday.

“Improving the results we get from our education system is the single most important thing we can do to improve the productivity of New Zealand.”

However, some in the schooling sector said they felt the country had taken a step backwards.

Operational grant funding, used to run schools and pay support staff, was given just 2.5% to 3% more funding, for a total $200m, but inflation had risen by 4%, education union NZEI said.

“Every year we’re being asked to run schools off the smell of an oily rag,” NZEI national executive member Liam Rutherford said in response to Budget 2024.

“Every year we’re being asked to run schools off the smell of an oily rag,” national executive member Liam Rutherford said.

“Principals will not be able to provide additional teacher aides to their staffing, or any other support staff.”

He said the $153m spent on charter schools would have made a “huge difference” if it was spent on state schools instead - worth the equivalent of 700 full-time teacher aide salaries.

Avonside Girls’ High School principal Catherine Law, in Christchurch, said she would put a teacher aide in every classroom if she had the funding.

Principal Catherine Law says she’d put a teacher aide in every Avonside Girls’ High School classroom if she had the funding for it.

“They make the difference for a significant amount of our young people, being able to have that support and learning but also that support to talk to.”

Principals were already “struggling to provide what we know our young people need”, she said.

However, Law was “really pleased” to see the Budget include $143m to continue Christchurch school rebuilds, and $53m to train teachers in schools.

Her biggest let down was the funding reduction for the free school lunch programme because “we know as principals that hungry children don’t learn”.

“We’re mucking around in the weeds really,” Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said after reviewing Budget 2024.

The Post Primary Teacher’s Association said the Budget was “heavy on promises but light on delivery”.

Schools were “worse off in real terms”, president Chris Abercrombie said.

He noted spending on property was a necessity, but said people were the “most important investment in education”.

“Secondary schools are one of the key front line services in our country and we have been let down badly.”

Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said the education budget was not visionary and the Government was “mucking around in the weeds”.

It did not include anything to support students with higher needs, the property investment “was already going into property”, and charter schools posed a “threat to quality education”, she said.

“I really want to get to a point that education is not the political football, but I just can’t get in and support the decisions that have been made.”