Children’s Act 2014 requirements for schools and kura

Schools, kura and their contracted providers must safety check all their children's workers and must have a child protection policy. These are requirements of the Children’s Act.

Level of compliance Main audience Other

Required

  • Boards
  • Principals and Tumuaki
  • Administrators
  • Teachers and Kaiako
  • Parents, Caregivers and Whānau

All education providers must meet the requirements set out in the Children’s Act 2014.

When the Act was renamed

In December 2018 the Vulnerable Children's Act 2014 was renamed the Children’s Act 2014.

All guidance and resources on this page referring to Vulnerable Children's Act should be read as Children’s Act 2014. The guidance remains unchanged and the information is current. 

Vulnerable Children's Act guide

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide (the guide) helps you navigate the requirements of the Act.

It brings together information and resources already published and complements the advice and guidelines produced by the Children’s Action Plan.

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide [PDF, 5.2 MB]

Quick links to resources within the guide

  • Page 16: Scope of the standard safety checking environment
  • Page 20: Relieving teachers
  • Page 23: Trainees on practicum
  • Page 27: What checks do I need to undertake for adults coming onto my school?
  • Page 35: Safety checking for new and existing employees

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide [PDF, 5.2 MB]

Child protection policies

From 1 July 2016, all schools and kura need to have a child protection policy in place.

Child protection policies encourage early identification and referral of suspected child abuse or neglect. They also help build a strong culture of child protection in your school or kura.

Find information about child protection policies on page 40 of the guide.

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide [PDF, 5.2 MB]

Key requirements of a child protection policy

The policy needs to:

  • be written down and in use
  • define how suspected neglect and abuse will be identified and reported
  • be reviewed every three years
  • be available on school websites or on request.

Safety checking

All children’s workers need to be safety checked every 3 years.

This includes both staff employed and staff engaged in your school or kura, whose work involves regular or overnight contact with children. They're classified as either core workers or non-core workers.

Core workers

Core workers are either in sole charge or have primary responsibility or authority over the child or children in their care.

Schools and kura are now unable to employ a core worker who has a specified criminal conviction unless they hold a core worker exemption.

Find information about workforce restriction and the core worker exemption on page 36 of the guide.

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide [PDF, 5.2 MB]

Visit the Oranga Tamariki website for more information about the:

  • workforce restriction, and
  • core worker exemption.

Children's Act requirements – Oranga Tamariki(external link)

Non-core workers

Non-core workers have regular but limited child contact and are never alone with children. 

Volunteers

Volunteers don't need to be safety checked under the Children Act 2014 or the Education and Training Act 2020.

A school or kura Māori can choose whether to safety check (including whether to vet) volunteers that support their school (this may be guided by their own child protection policies and any health and safety policy or procedures).

If a school or kura Māori chooses to police vet a volunteer, the vet request should be submitted to the NZ Police as a non-Children Act 2014 vet (that is, one that isn’t required by the Children Act 2014 legislation).

Safety checking people in your school

Overview: What checks you need to do on people in your school [PDF, 449 KB]

Safety checking steps

Find more information about safety checking steps on what checks do you need to do on people in your school on page 17 of the guide.

The Vulnerable Children's Act guide [PDF, 5.2 MB]

Identity confirmation

  • What do you need to do to ensure that someone is who they say they are?

Information about previous criminal convictions (if any)

  • A police vet will identify any criminal convictions that would prevent them working at your school.

Police vetting for schools and kura Māori

Other information

 

  • Is there anything in their previous work history that identifies any concerns (if new employee)?
  • Information from organisation with which they have a professional membership, licensing or registration authority
  • Referee checks (if new employee)
  • Interview (if a new employee)

Risk assessment

 

  • Does the person pose any risk to the safety of children?
  • What do we need to do to make sure they are safe to work with children?

Periodic safety checks

 

  • How do we ensure ongoing commitment to child safety?
  • Page 33

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