Boarding allowances information for schools

A boarding allowance can help students living in remote areas or facing other barriers, board away from home and focus on their studies. Parents or caregivers have to apply for this allowance and funding is paid directly to schools.

Learn about the funding that the hosts of boarding students may be eligible to receive. 

• Information for parents and caregivers
• Information for schools
• Closing dates for applications
• Further information

Information for parents and caregivers

If you're a parent or caregiver, visit our Parents website for information on boarding allowances and how to apply.

Boarding allowances — Parents website(external link)

Information for schools

Funding is paid to the school at the start of each term.

If your school has enrolled students who receive a boarding allowance, here’s how the funding process works. If you have students who board privately, you'll receive their boarding allowance. The person boarding the student will need to arrange with you to receive the payment. You need to pay this by the third week of the term.

The amount of boarding allowance funding a student receives depends on:

• what type of barrier they are facing — an access barrier or multiple barriers
• where they board.

Funding given for access or multiple barriers and the type of board

Additional funding 

Extra funding is provided to cover the cost of travel for students travelling between their home and Great Barrier Island. For students that live on Pitt Island or Chatham Islands, the Ministry funds four return trips each year between their home and their boarding school. 

For students who receive the boarding allowance, the school receives an additional $500 for pastoral care to help the student.

The boarding allowance may not cover all of the student’s boarding fees. The difference will need to be paid by the student’s family. The boarding allowance will continue for as long as the student is at school, or until the barriers they are facing no longer exist. 

Closing dates for applications

All applications for the following school year are due by 31 October each year.

Decisions are issued early December.

We may consider applications outside of this annual date at our discretion.

Last reviewed: 03 December 2020 Has this been useful? Give us your feedback