When a student transfers or leaves school

Learn how to manage assistive technology when a recipient student transfers or leaves school.

Level of compliance	Main audience	Other
Required	Teachers and Kaiako Principals and Tumuaki	Boards Parents, Caregivers and Whānau

Level of compliance

Main audience

Other

Required

Teachers and Kaiako
Principals and Tumuaki

Boards
Parents, Caregivers and Whānau

Students changing school usually take their Ministry assistive technology with them. Students leaving school need to contact their local Assistive Technology Coordinator for advice.

Changing schools

Students who are changing schools should take their assistive technology with them, except if moving to a school overseas. The school can obtain an up-to-date list of all allocated assistive technology from the local assistive technology coordinator prior to the transition.

Whenever possible:

transition to a new school should be planned, and information about the allocated assistive technology's purpose and use should be shared with the new school
assistive technology will move with the student by the family/whānua and/or school staff as part of a planned transition between the schools
training should be undertaken as part of the transition process to ensure the new school team know how to use the assistive technology and are familiar with the students learning needs.

We suggest the following options for sharing information about the use of the assistive technology with the new school: (Note: Permission from the student’s family/whānau is required before sharing information).

provide a copy of the original assistive technology assessment application form and decision letter
hold a meeting involving people from both the student's former school and new school to discuss the use of the assistive technology and transfer of the equipment
share a video or multimedia presentation with the new school showing the new school team why the assistive technology is needed for learning and how the student has been using it
provide an e-portfolio to the new school with specific examples of the student's use of the assistive technology.

As part of the transfer process, schools need to complete a Transfer form Assistive technology form – Transfer [DOCX, 66 KB] to officially transfer the assistive technology.

The former school complete the first page of the Transfer Form which should go with the equipment to the new school. The new school complete the second page when they receive the equipment and accepting ownership of the items. The new school send a completed copy of the transfer form to their local assistive technology coordinator.

The former school should ensure all school network domain settings are removed from the device and it is cleaned and in good working order. Any passwords and security codes should be shared with the new school to enable access to the device. A copy of the purchase invoice/receipt should be included with the transfer form for the new school to take ownership.

If any items are lost or damaged before it is transferred, the former school should replace these before transferring them to the new school. Refer to “loss, repairs and maintenance” for more information on this if required.

If the assistive technology is not required at the new school, it should be returned to the assistive technology coordinator at your local Ministry of Education office.

If the new school have a “bring your own device” (BYOD) policy where the student is required to have a specific device for their learning, then this would not be considered assistive technology. In this case the allocated assistive technology may be gifted to the student or should be returned to the local Ministry of Education office.

If the student has assistive technology and is leaving school to be home schooled, the device may be gifted to the family to use at home if it is essential in that new learning environment. Any future repairs or replacements will be the families’ responsibility unless the student continues to receive specialist learning support services. This must be discussed with the local assistive technology coordinator prior to the assistive technology going home.

Update the Asset Register

When the student transfers schools, the assistive technology item(s) are removed from the former school’s asset register and added to the new school’s asset register.

Visit the Inclusive Education Online Knowledge Centre for more ideas and resources on what to do when a student changes schools.

Transitions: Managing times of change – Inclusive Education website(external link)

Leaving school

When a student is leaving school, contact the assistive technology coordinator at your local Ministry office to arrange the next step- before completing the Assistive technology form – Transfer [DOCX, 66 KB].

The school can obtain an up-to-date list of all allocated assistive technology from the local assistive technology coordinator prior to leaving school.

The next step may be one of following 3 options, depending on the individual situation.

IF...	THEN...
1. The assistive technology has a current value of more than $5,000 and is required by the student to support further education or work.	The student can take the assistive technology with them when they leave school. The assistive technology will become the responsibility of the Ministry of Health Note: When the assistive technology is transferred to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education or school has no further liability for the safety or ongoing maintenance of the assistive technology. The family can contact the Ministry of Health for any future repairs or replacements as required.
2. The assistive technology has a current value of less than $5,000 and is required by the student to support further education or work.	The assistive technology can be gifted to the student for ongoing use if required for further education or employment. Once agreed, the assistive technology coordinator will provide a letter confirming the assistive technology can be gifted which should be signed by parents/ whānau or student. Note: When the assistive technology is gifted to the student, the Ministry of Education and school have no further liability for the safety or ongoing maintenance of the device. It becomes the family’s responsibility for any future repairs or replacements needed.
The student no longer needs the assistive technology	The assistive technology should be returned to the Assistive Technology Coordinator at your local Ministry of Education office, with the first page of the transfer form completed. All school network domain settings should be removed from the device and it should be cleaned and in working order. Any missing or broken parts should be repaired or replaced before it is returned.

IF...

THEN...

1. The assistive technology has a current value of more than $5,000 and is required by the student to support further education or work.

The student can take the assistive technology with them when they leave school. The assistive technology will become the responsibility of the Ministry of Health

Note: When the assistive technology is transferred to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education or school has no further liability for the safety or ongoing maintenance of the assistive technology. The family can contact the Ministry of Health for any future repairs or replacements as required.

2. The assistive technology has a current value of less than $5,000 and is required by the student to support further education or work.

The assistive technology can be gifted to the student for ongoing use if required for further education or employment.

Once agreed, the assistive technology coordinator will provide a letter confirming the assistive technology can be gifted which should be signed by parents/ whānau or student.

Note: When the assistive technology is gifted to the student, the Ministry of Education and school have no further liability for the safety or ongoing maintenance of the device. It becomes the family’s responsibility for any future repairs or replacements needed.

The student no longer needs the assistive technology

The assistive technology should be returned to the Assistive Technology Coordinator at your local Ministry of Education office, with the first page of the transfer form completed.

All school network domain settings should be removed from the device and it should be cleaned and in working order. Any missing or broken parts should be repaired or replaced before it is returned.

Update the Asset Register

When the student leaves the school, the assistive technology item(s) are removed from the school’s asset register.

No longer needing the technology

If your student no longer needs the assistive technology to support learning at school, it should be returned to the Ministry of Education so it can be re-issued to another student. In some cases (depending on the age of the device) it may be gifted to the family to use at home as required.

The school need to download and complete the first page only of the Assistive technology form – Transfer [DOCX, 66 KB] and send it with the assistive technology items to the local Assistive Technology Coordinator.

The school should ensure the device is cleaned and all school network domain settings are removed from the device. Any passwords and security codes should be shared with local assistive technology coordinator to enable access to the device so it can be re-set.

Last reviewed: 17 March 2023 Has this been useful? Give us your feedback