Need-to-know | Me mātua mōhio#
Amendments to licensing criteria announced#
Associate Minister of Education Hon David Seymour has announced updates to the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 licensing criteria for centre-based, home-based and hospital based early learning services.
These changes will be effective from 20 April 2026. We’ll provide more information in early 2026 to help you understand and plan for the changes, including explaining how compliance with the new requirements will be assessed.
Find out more here:
Playgroup funding#
A reminder to playgroups that the July to December 2025 playgroup operational funding round will be closing on 31 December. Submit your funding request by 12 December.
Playgroups can apply for operational funding using the Education Resourcing System (ERS). Your playgroup authoriser should approve the request before submitting it to us.
The January to June 2026 funding round will open on 1 January.
Contact your regional office education advisor if you need further information.
Key dates for ECE funding 2026 calendar#
Key dates for ECE funding in 2026 have now been published on our website. A PDF version of the key funding dates is also available to download from the website:
Key dates and forms for early learning funding
Removal of 20th of the month payments from July 2026
As noted in the 9 October Bulletin, from July 2026 we will no longer process late RS7 return submissions for payment on the 20th of the month. Any late submissions will be paid on the first of the following month.
Be aware there are now two submission date deadlines for each funding round – one for paper-based RS7 returns and one for electronic RS7 returns. These deadlines are shown on the published key dates for ECE funding 2026 calendar. Paper-based RS7 returns need to be received earlier as they require more processing time.
Recording holiday season closures#
Services are reminded to check the absence rules in the ECE Funding Handbook for the upcoming holiday period and to ensure that absences are accurately recorded.
ECE Funding Handbook – 6-4 Absence rules
In both scenarios below you can only claim funded child hours for the hours staff are present for that day. For example, if the teacher starts at 9am and closes the service at 12pm (instead of 3pm), you can only claim funded child hours for 3 hours.
Services that are open and booked children do not attend
When a service is open during the holiday period and parents have confirmed that their child(ren) will attend, if teachers are present but no children attend the service, they are entitled to funding for that day and should use the SO code. Evidence of booked enrolments should be kept for auditing purposes.
Services that are not normally open on public holidays
If you are not normally open on a public holiday but have agreed with parents to open, funding may be claimed for children who attend the service on that day. Absences can be claimed only for children who were enrolled to attend on that public holiday. Public holidays cannot be included in advance funding claims and will be paid by wash up.
Targeted Funding for Disadvantage survey#
The Targeted Funding for Disadvantage (TFFD) survey, which normally goes out in December, will be sent in January 2026 this round. If your service received $2,000 or more in targeted funding in the 2025 calendar year, we will be emailing your funding contact in mid-January to complete the required reporting. Check that the contact details of your funding contact are up to date.
Heads-up | He kupu puaki#
New law brings key changes for early childhood education#
Parliament has passed the Education and Training (Early Childhood Education Reform) Amendment Act 2025:
This moves forward changes aimed at modernising the early childhood education (ECE) regulatory system in line with good regulatory practice and improving its effectiveness for children, parents and caregivers.
The legislation will amend the Education and Training Act 2020, by:
- clarifying the purpose, objectives and guiding principles of regulating the ECE system
- establishing a new statutory role, the Director of Regulation, with responsibilities for performing key regulatory functions in the ECE system
- clarifying responsibilities around the prescription of licensing criteria.
The legislation was initiated in response to the Ministry for Regulation’s Early Childhood Education regulatory review and will take effect on 23 February.
Find out more at:
Early learning regulatory review
Changes to the National Education and Learning Priorities#
On 9 December 2024, Cabinet-approved amendments to the Education and Training Act to remove the Statement of National Education and Learning Priorities (NELP) provisions and all related references from the Act and associated education regulations.
It also amends the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008 to revoke the requirement for licensed early childhood education (ECE) service providers to have regard to any NELP statement.
All references to NELP provisions in the licensing criteria will be updated as part of the broader licensing criteria changes scheduled for April 2026. Until then, references to the NELP will remain in the licensing criteria.
However, from 1 December, licensed ECE service providers are no longer required to comply with NELP provisions set out in the criterion for annual plan, self-review and internal evaluation. Our forms and website have been updated to reflect these changes:
Centre-based ECE services
GMA6 – Self-review and internal evaluation
Home-based ECE services
GMA5 Self-review and internal evaluation
Hospital-based ECE services
GMA6 Self-review and internal evaluation
Kōhanga reo ECE services
GMA6 Self-review and internal evaluation
Any pātai, email us.
Email: [email protected]
OECD Starting Strong Survey 2024 results available#
First reports from the OECD’s Starting Strong Teaching and Learning International Survey are now available. New Zealand took part in mid-2024. Due to low participation, results cannot be generalised and reflect only the experiences of survey participants.
We thank those participants for their time and their contribution to international research into early learning. The three initial New Zealand reports are:
- a profile of participants (including resourcing issues and priorities for funding)
- use of practices to support children’s learning and development, plus professional learning and development participation and barriers
- a report focusing on workplace wellbeing, including sources of stress, collaboration with colleagues, self-efficacy, and approaches to shared leadership.
The OECD report includes information from all the countries and systems that participated.
Access the reports here:
TALIS 2024 (Teaching and Learning International Survey) – Education Counts
Results from TALIS Starting Strong 2024 – OECD
Submissions for ECE funding system review close 12 December#
The Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) Early Childhood Education funding review has completed more than 40 meetings with providers, parents, staff and others who care about the sector. MAG members want to thank everyone who has so far provided their time and input to this important work.
Submissions for this discovery phase can be made by 12 December at:
ECE Funding Review – Microsoft Forms
Find out more here:
Ministerial Advisory Group – Early childhood education funding system review
ECE leadership coaching programme – Case stories and report#
Case stories and a final report from the ECE Leadership Coaching Programme are available on Tāhūrangi.
The case stories provide reflective insights from leaders and include steps to help kaiako engage in further professional learning. Stories show impacts of coaching on teaching practice.
The final report outlines the pilot and evaluation of an approach designed to strengthen ECE leadership, build internal capability, and improve curriculum implementation to support positive child outcomes.
Find these at:
Leadership coaching case stories and final evaluation report – Tāhūrangi
New Kōwhiti Whakapae resources available#
New resources are available to support kaiako using Kōwhiti Whakapae. These include 6 new assessment examples, a video series featuring pedagogical leaders from centre- and home-based services and 2 printable PDF versions of Kōwhiti Whakapae.
All early learning services will also receive printed Kōwhiti Whakapae books. The updates respond to feedback and support flexible, inclusive engagement with the resource.
Explore the online resources here:
Assessment Examples – Kōwhiti Whakapae
