$66 million for learner and educator wellbeing

The Government will provide a $50 million Urgent Response Fund (URF) for centre-based early learning services, schools and kura to support the wellbeing needs of their learners and ākonga, and a further $16 million to support education workforce wellbeing.

  • Resources and materials for improving learner wellbeing/reducing stress, anxiety, depression, grief.
  • Catch-up learning support, small group tutoring.
  • Boosting learner attendance, engagement, participation and progress.
  • Professional advice, such as mentors, counsellors, child psychologists and behaviour support workers to advise on responses to children or young people’s needs.
  • Community support by a service or school, such as before or after school care.
  • Additional teacher time or teacher aide time to support children and young people with COVID-19 lockdown wellbeing needs.
  • Teacher release to provide additional support to students.
  • Additional support for learners with mild to moderate, to high and complex needs including those who are neurodiverse and gifted.
  • Connecting with iwi, hapū, community organisations, churches, local services and others who know their communities and are well placed to support families and whānau.

Responsibility for the Fund will be devolved to Directors of Education, working with early learning services, schools, kura, and community providers. All funding decisions will be made locally. The funding, for 2020/2021, can be used for individual, group, class or school, kura or early learning service wide responses to learner wellbeing needs.

The $16 million for education workforce wellbeing will provide support services for more employees of publicly funded early learning services, kōhanga reo, schools and kura, and their families.

The funding will increase access to wellbeing support services for around 6,500 additional school employees in 2020/2021; increasing to around 10,000 in 2022.

The Ministry of Education will work with the Ministry of Health and will consult the education sector on how to best deliver workplace assistance and counselling for education workers and their families.

Apply for the COVID-19 Urgent Response Fund

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