Licensing criteria for kōhanga reo

Kōhanga reo run a total immersion te reo Māori whānau (family) programme for mokopuna (young children) from birth to six years of age to be raised within its whānau Māori, where the language of communication will be Māori.

The operation and decision making of each kōhanga reo are the responsibility of the whole whānau within the guidelines set down by Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust Board. The trust and the kōhanga reo whānau administer the kaupapa to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the mokopuna and the whānau and to ensure the survival of te reo Māori.

Kōhanga reo are currently chartered to Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust and licensed by the Ministry of Education under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008.

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008(external link)

The Ministry does not provide guidance for the kōhanga reo licensing criteria. Guidance is available upon request directly from Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust.

Contact – Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust(external link)

A copy of the criteria can be downloaded from the right-hand column.

The licensing criteria were last updated in September 2022.

Ngā mahi Whakahaere me āna Whakaritenga | Governance, management and administration

47 Governance, management, and administration standard: general

(1) The governance, management, and administration standard: general is the standard that requires every licensed service provider to whom this regulation applies to ensure that—

(a) the service is effectively governed and is managed in accordance with good management practices; and

(b) the service provider regularly collaborates with—

(i) parents and family or whānau of children enrolled in the service; and
(ii) the adults responsible for providing education and care as part of the service; and

(c) appropriate documentation and records are—

(i) developed, maintained, and regularly reviewed; and
(ii) made available where appropriate; (A) at any reasonable time on request by a parent of a child enrolled in the service; and (B) at any time on request by any person exercising powers or carrying out functions under Part 26 of the Act; and

(d) adequate information is made available to parents of enrolled children and, where appropriate, to the families or whānau of those children about the operation of the service; and

(e) all reasonable steps are taken to provide staff employed or engaged in the service with adequate professional support, professional development opportunities, and resources.

(2) Each licensed service provider to whom this regulation applies must comply with the governance, management, and administration standard: general.

The criteria in this section are grouped together by topic. Each criterion has also been given a short, descriptive title. These titles are provided only to help you navigate around more easily on the website – they do not form part of the criteria themselves.

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