Annual reporting guidelines

The following guidelines will help you prepare and file your annual report. These guidelines are updated annually.

• Annual report
• Preparing your annual financial statements
• Audit expectations
• Filing your annual report
• Publishing your annual report online
• Important reminders
• Accounting guidance on key areas
• Appendix 1: Components of the annual report
• Appendix 2: Annual report checklist
• Appendix 3: Good Employer Disclosure

Annual report

All schools and kura must prepare an annual report under section 134 of the Education and Training Act 2020 [1]. The annual report is a key accountability document that school boards are required to prepare to inform and report to stakeholders including the Ministry, Members of Parliament, parents, and the wider community of schools and kura.

It shows how school boards have applied their financial resources to achieve the goals set out in their charter.

The annual report must include:

• list of all school board members
• audited annual financial statements
• statement of variance
• Kiwisport funding
• Statement of compliance with employment policy

All required components of the annual report are explained in Appendix 1. A full checklist is provided in Appendix 2 to help you prepare your annual report. Good employer disclosure is explained in Appendix 3.

The annual reporting timeline is as follows:

As soon as practicable following the completion of the audited annual financial statements the school board must ensure that its annual report is available to the public on a website maintained by or on behalf of the school board (s136 Education and Training Act 2020).

If you have questions about preparing your annual report, please contact the school finance adviser in your region.

Preparing your annual financial statements

Requirements and guidance

Public sector public benefit entity (PBE) financial reporting standards are mandatory for all state and state-integrated schools and kura. To ensure compliance with these standards, schools and kura are required to prepare annual financial statements using the format outlined in the Kiwi Park School model [2].

On the Ministry’s Schools annual report (annual financial statement) resources webpage, you can find:

• The Kiwi Park model annual financial statements and related guidance; and
• A series of short videos which provide additional guidance on how to use the Kiwi Park model.

Financial reporting tiers

The public sector PBE financial reporting standards categorise entities into four tiers based on the entities level of public accountability and size. These tiers determine the format of reporting and required disclosures for that entity.

The Kiwi Park model financial statements are designed to assist schools and kura to prepare their annual financial statements.

Schools and kura with expenses greater than $30 million are categorised as tier 1 and those below $30 million are categorised as tier 2.

Additional disclosures are required for tier 1 schools and kura under the Kiwi Park model financial statements. Refer to the Ministry’s Schools annual report (annual financial statement) webpage.

The financial reporting standards also allow schools and kura moving between tiers as expenditure levels change. Please contact your school finance adviser if you are expecting to move tiers.

Group financial statements

Under the accounting standard PBE IPSAS 35: Consolidated Financial Statements, an entity is controlled by the school board for financial reporting purposes if the school board has:

• power over the entity;
• exposure, or rights, to variable benefits from its involvement with the entity; and
• the ability to use its power over the entity to affect the nature or amount of the benefits from its involvement.

Schools and kura must prepare consolidated annual financial statements if they meet the requirements of PBE IPSAS 35. They should use the Kiwi Park Group model.

Accounting standard changes

There are no changes to the accounting standards for the 2022 financial year.

Audit expectations

Quality of the annual financial statements

The quality of the draft annual financial statements, and working papers submitted for audit, are a significant factor in the overall success of the annual audit.

High quality annual financial statements will reduce:

• the number of required audit changes; and
• the likelihood of the auditor incurring additional audit costs (which they may seek to recover) from reviewing multiple versions of the annual financial statements.

Auditors do not expect to review more than two draft versions and one final version of the annual financial statements.

We encourage you to work cooperatively with your auditor to ensure the best quality of financial statements for your school and/or kura.

Key information

All key information and supporting documentation for the audit are provided to the auditor by 31 March each year by the school board. This is the responsibility of the school board, although your school may have a service provider that prepares the financial statements.

Key information that the auditor requires are:

• A copy of your schools and kura draft annual financial statements approved by the school board.
• Any supporting working papers and documents used in the preparation of the draft annual financial statements.
• Evidence that the school or kura has appropriate internal controls over payments and receipts throughout the year.
• Signed school board minutes and other sub-committee and in-committee minutes for the financial year and up to the date of sign-off of the annual report.
• A copy of your school’s or kura approved budget, general ledger and trial balance.
• Any employment settlements.

Your appointed auditor should provide you with a list of audit requirements prior to starting the audit but please contact them if you haven’t received one.

Statement of responsibility and letter of representation

The current principal and presiding member are required to sign the statement of responsibility and letter of representation on behalf of the school or kura.

This cannot be completed by a previous principal or presiding member.

The signed statement of responsibility and letter of representation are returned to the auditor with the final school board approved financial statements. The independent auditor’s report is then issued which forms part of the school’s or kura annual report.

The annual report is then uploaded to a board-controlled website.

Filing your annual report

Secure Data Portal for submission of annual reports

Please use the Secure Data Portal(external link) link to submit your annual report to the Ministry. The Secure Data Portal is well protected and is accessed as follows:

1. Enter your log in details on the Education Sector Logon box and log in.
2. Once in the Secure Data Portal, in the How to send your File(s) to the Ministry of Education: section, click on File Type. Choose Annual Reports (31 May) to upload the annual report correctly. See Figure 1 below.

Figure 1

Your report should be a single PDF file, including audited annual financial statements and required signatures (presiding member, principal and independent auditor’s report). Please ensure you scan originals rather than copies when creating the PDF to ensure they are legible.

Submission of financial statements in Excel format

Schools and kura can also upload an Excel spreadsheet version of their annual financial statements via Te Tāhuhu | the Ministry’s Secure Data Portal(external link). Please ensure that this is the final audited version of the annual financial statements. Uploading an Excel version of this data will help ensure data can be collated in a timely manner. This is optional and is in addition to the required PDF version for the annual financial statements.

The process for uploading the Excel version of the annual financial statements is the same as for uploading the PDF annual report. 

Publishing your annual report online

Your school board is required to publish the annual report on a website maintained by or on behalf of the school board at the same time as you submit your annual report to the Ministry.

If you do not currently have a website, the Ministry can host your annual report on our Education Counts website, www.educationcounts.govt.nz(external link).

Please send your request for us to host your annual report, along with the school board’s approval, to planning.reporting@education.govt.nz.

It is the school board’s responsibility to ensure your annual report does not contain any information that may breach an individual’s privacy before you make it publicly available.

You can find further guidance on our website: Publishing your documents online.

Important reminders

Payroll

Your 2022 payroll information will be provided to you in early February 2023 to help you prepare your annual financial statements.

The payroll information will be provided to you in two ways:​

• EdPay online - SAAR and Leave Liability reports; and 
  • The SAAR report will be provided in both PDF and Excel formats. Please provide both to your auditor and service provider.
• Secure Data Portal
  • Payroll Error (February) and;
  • Payroll Exception reports (March). 

The information provided through the Secure Data Portal will be password protected​.

• The password will be the MoE Number of the person who is paid using the designation code “S01” as at Pay period 21. This is the principal designation code;
• The password will exclude the preceding zeros of the MOE number e.g., if the principal’s number is 012345 the password will be 12345 and;
• If your school or kura did not have a person who is paid using the “S01” designation code a generic password will be applied to your reports.
• You will be sent a reminder of how and when to access this end of year payroll information in January 2023.

We encourage you to complete as much of your draft annual financial statements as you can, ahead of the payroll information being ready, as this will help you to meet the 31 March deadline.

Holidays Act compliance – schools payroll

The Ministry's review of the school sector payroll, to ensure compliance with the Holidays Act 2003, is ongoing. Schools and kura are required to include a standard disclosure note in their financial statements. The wording of this disclosure is provided in the Kiwi Park model financial statements.

Further information on the review, including frequently asked questions, is available on Holidays Act Compliance - schools payroll.

Letter of support

As part of the audit process, your auditor will assess the appropriateness of preparing your financial statements on a going concern basis.

If your auditor has concerns about the ability of your school or kura to meet its financial obligations in the next 12-month period after the completion of the current year audit, they will request a letter of support from the Ministry.

For a letter of support, please contact the school finance adviser in your region.

Accounting guidance on key areas

How to record funding from the Ministry in your financial statements

The ‘Revenue Types’ tab of the Kiwi Park model financial statements provides a list of funding provided to schools and kura, and how they should be reported in your annual financial statements. All funding components of your quarterly operations grant, apart from any banking staffing settlement, should be coded to Government Grants.

You can find guidance on how to record funding you have received from new Ministry initiatives or programs on our website in our quick reference guide Quick reference guide for new Ministry funding and programmes.

School activities directly funded by the Ministry 

Similar to your teachers’ salaries costs and the land and buildings notional rent, these transactions are directly funded by the ministry and represent activities within you school. This is important information for inclusion in your financial statements and should be provided to your service provider or business manager.

This information will be made available via the Secure Data Portal in early February. 

The transactions and balances below need to be included in your financial statements where relevant:

• Te Mana Tūhono costs paid directly by the Ministry
• Ikura | manaakitia te whare tangata paid directly by the Ministry
• Intervention funding paid directly by the Ministry
• Ka ora, Ka Ako | healthy school lunches programme paid directly by the Ministry
• CO2 monitors and air purifiers assets supplied and paid for by the Ministry
• The balance of any debt owed to the Ministry at 31 December

Borrowing

School boards can only borrow within the limits set by section 155 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (external link) and the conditions specified in Crown Entities (Financial Powers) Regulations 2005, regulation 12 (external link).

The total annual cost to the school board in repayment of principal and interest of all borrowings must be equal to or less than 10% of the value of the school board’s annual operational grants.

A school board can apply to exceed the 10% limit. Guidance on how to apply for borrowing approval is contained in section 2.10.2 in Financial Information for Schools Handbook (FISH).

Conflicts of interest

A conflict of interest is where a school board member has an interest or duty that conflicts (or could be perceived to conflict) with the interests or duties of the school board. School board members with a conflict of interest must declare it and remove themselves from any discussions or decision-making by the school board relating to that matter.

For contracts or financial interests greater than $25,000 per annum, the school board must apply for prior approval of the Secretary for Education.

For guidance on how to manage conflicts of interest, please refer to section 2.6 in Financial Information for Schools Handbook (FISH).​

Capital works

The funds received for capital works projects through 5YA should not be recorded as revenue to your school or kura as the funds are held on behalf of the Ministry until spent. The advance of funds from the Ministry should be recorded as a liability to the Ministry in your financial statements. ​

Payments for capital works projects should be charged against the liability account and not expensed to your profit and loss. ​

For guidance on how to account for your capital works projects please refer to section 4.9.1 in Financial Information for Schools Handbook (FISH). 

Cyclical maintenance provisions

To support better planning for cyclical maintenance costs, such as the internal and external painting of your school or kura, and to comply with generally accepted accounting practice, schools and kura are required to include a provision for cyclical maintenance as a liability in their balance sheets. Schools and kura should set sufficient funds aside to match that liability.

Auditors may be looking at this area in more detail as some auditing standards have recently been updated which requires auditors to gain a more detailed understanding of the method, assumptions, and data used to prepare your cyclical maintenance provision.

We have updated our guidance and provided worked examples on the preparation and basis for calculation of the cyclical maintenance provision on our website.

Managing school finances – Education in New Zealand

There is guidance on cyclical maintenance provisions in section 4.19 in Financial Information for Schools Handbook (FISH).

Statement of compliance with employment policy 

We have updated our guidance for annual reports to include the requirement of boards to report on their compliance with their employment policy. Although this is not a new requirement, some boards may not have been aware of the need to include this statement in their annual reports.

Your board is required to operate an employment policy that complies with the principle of being a good employer. Your board must ensure compliance with this policy (including your equal employment opportunities programme) and report in your annual report on the extent of your compliance (section 597(1) of the Education and Training Act 2020).

Your board may wish to use the optional template in Appendix 3 as part of your annual report. 

Payroll controls at the school or kura level

During the year EdPay and the ministry prepared and released updated guidance for schools outlining key payroll internal controls. The guidance is designed to assist schools and kura to strengthen the payroll internal control environment using the functionality available in EdPay.

The following guidance is available for download from the training section of EdPay’s website:

• school payroll internal processes and controls
• how to use EdPay transaction histories
• checking transactions using the activity history and timesheet and leave histories in Edpay

While these are suggested and highly recommended internal control practices for schools and kura, and how the EdPay system supports these. They are not compulsory as current systems in operation at a school or kura may already adequately cover these key internal controls. Ensuring that these controls can be evidenced is an important component of the annual audit process. 

Appendix 1: Components of the annual report

Presiding Member/Principal’s Report [OPTIONAL][3]

In this report, the presiding member and/or principal informs the school or kura community about the achievements and successes of the academic year. The report also provides an opportunity to tell staff, parents and students about the risks, challenges and opportunities coming up in the year ahead.

There are no samples provided of this kind of report in the Kiwi Park model as there are no mandatory requirements about content. Schools and kura determine what the report(s) will cover.

Kiwisport funding [ESSENTIAL]

Schools and kura are asked to include a short statement in their annual reports on how they have used their Kiwisport funding to increase students’ participation in organised sport. The use of the Kiwisport funding is monitored as part of schools and kura regular Education Review Office reviews.

The Kiwisport funding does not form part of the financial statements. It should be shown as a separate statement within the annual report.

Statement of compliance with employment policy [ESSENTIAL]

The Board is required to operate an employment policy that complies with the principle of being a good employer. Your board must ensure compliance with this policy (including your equal employment opportunities programme) and report in your annual report on the extent of compliance (section 597(1) of the Education and Training Act 2020).

The statement of compliance with employer policy does not form part of the financial statements. It should be shown as a separate statement within the annual report. Please refer to Appendix 3.

Other reports on special and contestable funding [MAY BE NECESSARY]

During the year the schools and kura may have been the recipient of additional government funding for specific purposes. Schools and kura may need to report on how these funds are used to support student development.

Statement of Variance  [ESSENTIAL]

This is a discussion of the outcomes achieved, compared to the outcomes planned, in areas of priority for the year. The school board will present an appraisal of their performance based on the aims, objectives, directions, priorities or targets as set out in the annual section of the school charter. Some schools and kura will choose to combine the presiding member’s report, the principal’s report and the statement of variance into one report.

List of all school board members [ESSENTIAL]

This list details the people who govern the school or kura. It must include the name of each school board member who served on the school board during the year, and the date on which that member will finish their term.

The list of school board members does not form part of the financial statements. However, given its significance it has been included as part of the Kiwi Park model.  

Audited annual financial statements

Statement of Responsibility  [ESSENTIAL]

This statement is signed by the principal and the presiding member. It acknowledges that the school board is responsible for the preparation and accuracy of the financial statements and states that the school board has established and maintained a system of internal control to safeguard the assets of the school or kura.

Statement of Comprehensive Revenue and Expense  [ESSENTIAL]

This statement summarises the revenue and expense of the school or kura over the financial year. It shows whether the school or kura has managed to operate within the funding they have received.

Statement of Changes in Net Assets/Equity [ESSENTIAL]

This statement shows the value and movements of the Government’s investment over the course of financial year in the school or kura, (this is known as ‘equity’) in the financial statement.

Statement of Financial Position  [ESSENTIAL]

This statement shows everything the school or kura owns (assets) and everything it owes (liabilities) as at 31 December of that year.

Statement of Cash Flows [ESSENTIAL]

This statement shows all cash received and all cash paid by the school or kura over the financial year.

Notes to the Financial Statements [ESSENTIAL]

The notes to the financial statements provide an extra level of detail that supports the information shown in the front of the accounts.

Independent Auditor’s Report [ESSENTIAL]

This report is prepared by the auditor of the school or kura and must be included in the annual report. It provides an opinion to the readers of the annual report whether the financial statements comply with generally accepted accounting practice, and fairly represent the financial position, financial performance and cash flows of the school or kura.

Appendix 2: Annual report checklist

Make sure that you can check off each of the items below before you submit the single original PDF file of your annual report to the Ministry.

1. Annual financial statements:
   1. Statement of responsibility signed and dated
   2. Statement of comprehensive revenue and expense
   3. Statement of changes in net assets/equity
   4. Statement of financial position
   5. Statement of cash flows
   6. Notes to the financial statements
   7. Independent auditor’s report signed and dated.
2. List of all school board members
3. Statement of variance
4. Kiwisport funding
5. Statement of compliance with employment policy
6. OPTIONAL - Presiding member/principal’s report
7. MAY BE NECESSARY - Other reports on special and contestable funding

Appendix 3: Good Employer Disclosure

Compliance with Education and Training Act 2020 requirements to be a good employer

Your board may wish to complete and include the following tables in your annual report to meet requirements under s 597 of the Education and Training Act 2020.

Under section 597 of the Act a good employer is one who operates a personnel policy containing provisions generally accepted as necessary for the fair and proper treatment of employees in all aspects of their employment.

A board is required to report on the extent of its compliance with its policies to be a good employer. The use of these tables is optional for this.

The board should look to confirm what actions or policies are already in place and what actions are being undertaken to meet the provisions under section 597 of the Act.

[OPTIONAL TEMPLATE] Compliance with Education and Training Act 2020 requirements to be a good employer for the year ending 31 December 20XX.

The following questions address key aspects of compliance with a good employer policy:

Good employer policies should include provisions for an Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) programme/policy . The Ministry of Education monitors these policies:

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