Suspend charter schools, not students

The Government must cancel plans to open seven more charter schools, as serious concerns are raised about the results of those schools already opened, the Green Party said today.

Most of the annual reports of the Partnership Schools already opened have been published today. The reports have been criticised for not providing information that’s comparable with state schools, including roll-based results for NCEA. Some schools had unacceptably high rates of suspensions and expulsions, and about half failed to meet all their agreed targets.

“There is no evidence that charter schools are delivering for the vulnerable kids who are enrolled, and enough concerns have been raised to justify cancelling plans to open any new charters,” Green Party education spokesperson Catherine Delahunty said.

“One of the most troubling revelations in the reports is the large number of kids who’ve been kicked out or suspended from charter schools.

“Kicking kids out of school is not a solution to educational underachievement. The Minister should be suspending the charter school experiment, not suspending vulnerable kids.

“These annual reports are puff pieces generated to drive PR, rather than to meaningfully report on the progress of the children within the charter schools.

“It is completely irresponsible for the National Government to be funding more of these experimental schools, while at the same time freezing funding for public schools.

“The state education system needs funding, not for that money to be diverted into charter schools.

“Freezing operation funding for schools in the 2016 Budget to make money available for charter schools was a mistake, and today’s results should have the Minister questioning that decision,” Ms Delahunty said.

Action

Tell us your stories about our special places

Share with us your stories about the places threatened by being fast tracked for mining permits.

Action

RENAME, REWRITE, and REJECT the Regulatory Standards Bill

Submit your suggested changes to the Regulatory Standards Bill! Tell us how you'd change the bill and we could take it to the House!

Action

Anniversary of the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill Referendum

If we were to legally regulate cannabis in Aotearoa, what kind of rules would you want to see around access, possession, use, regulations on sale, ...

Action

Save our Polytechs: Campaign Packs

Want to see more supports for our Polytechs? Use these resources to support the campaign!

Action

Save Our Polytechs Petition

Sign our petition today and join us in calling on the Minister for Vocational Education, Hon Penny Simmonds, to Save our Polytechs!

Action

Protect our tamariki - Sign the open letter

Every child in Aotearoa deserves to grow up with safety and stability, wrapped in aroha. Sign our open letter today and help make that a reality!

Action

Stop Growing Homelessness

Sign our petition asking Luxon and Bishop to take action to stop homelessness increasing in Aotearoa.

Action

Local Events

We have activists across Aotearoa / New Zealand who are working hard to build a brighter future for our kids and grandkids. This page lists upcomin...

Latest Education Announcements

Story

Scrapping NCEA will take Aotearoa Back to the Future

The government’s proposal to scrap NCEA risks turning back the clock on decades of progress toward a student-centred system.

Budget 2025 leaves future of school lunches uncertain

The future of the Ka Ora | Ka Ako school lunch programme looks to be uncertain with Budget 2025 failing to provide any funding beyond 2026.

Report shows Govt’s callous lack of support for system at breaking point

A new report from Aotearoa Educators’ Collective, released today, has confirmed what teachers, students, and whanau have been calling out for years...

Rangatahi voices must be centred in Government’s Relationship and Sexuality Education refresh

In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Se...

Green Party appalled by woeful Government offer to school support staff

Support staff across Aotearoa have been dealt yet another devastating blow with the release of the latest collective agreement offer from the Gover...

Greens call on Govt to leave Te Reo in schools alone

As Te Wiki o te Reo Māori approaches, the Government is considering deprioritising teaching Te Reo Māori in our schools.