Becoming a Trustee

School Board of Trustees Elections, Co-options, By-elections and Selections to Casual Vacancies.

All of New Zealand's state and state-integrated schools have a board of trustees. The board of trustees is the Crown entity responsible for the governance and the control of the management of the school. The board is the employer of all staff in the school, is responsible for setting the school's strategic direction in consultation with parents, staff and students, and ensuring that its school provides a safe environment and quality education for all its students. Boards are also responsible for overseeing the management of personnel, curriculum, property, finance and administration.

Board Membership

Trustees are elected by the parent community, staff members and, in the case of schools with students above Year 9, the students. The principal is also a member of the board. The board can also co-opt additional trustees. Co-option cannot be used to fill casual vacancies on a board; a board must hold a by-election to fill the casual vacancy or fill the casual vacancy by selection having first given consideration to the requirements of section 105 of the Education Act 1989.

A standard board of trustees' membership includes:

between three and seven parent elected trustees;
the principal of the school;
one staff elected trustee;
one student elected trustee (in schools with students above Year 9);
co-opted trustees; and
up to four trustees appointed by the proprietor (in state integrated schools only).

Board Elections

Boards of trustees must hold elections for parent and staff trustees every three years (i.e. at each triennial election). A board may also decide to adopt a mid-term (staggered) election cycle where half the parent representatives are elected at a mid-term election (18 months after the triennial election) and the remainder are elected at the triennial election. Elections for student trustees must be held annually in September in schools with students above Year 9.

Trustee Eligibility

Before anyone is elected, co-opted, or selected to a casual vacancy as a school trustee, they are required to confirm that, to the best of their knowledge, they are eligible to be a trustee. This means that they will have to confirm that they are not ineligible on any of the grounds specified in sections 103 and 103A of the Education Act 1989. Confirmation of eligibility must be given by completing and signing an approved Nomination or Eligibility Attestation form, which requires prospective trustees to declare that they have read and understood the trustee ineligibility criteria (included on the reverse of the form).

Data Collection on Boards of Trustees

For data on boards of trustees, including elections results go to Education Counts.

Succession Planning

Effective succession planning can greatly assist boards and schools around the election cycles through a strategic, systematic and deliberate effort to ensure effective retrieval systems, readiness, recruitment and retention of trustees. Resources are available to assist.