Proprietor and Integration Agreement

As a state-integrated school, St Joseph's School complies with the conditions of our integration agreement, which was entered into by the proprietor and the Minister of Education, and establishes a partnership between the proprietor and the Crown. Our integration agreement describes the special character of the school, and requires the school to operate in a way that maintains and preserves our special character. Our integration agreement also sets out conditions for employment, enrolment, and property, and other requirements that contribute to safeguarding the special character of the school.

The proprietor is responsible for supervising the maintenance and preservation of the education with a special character that St Joseph's School provides, and has the right to determine what is necessary to safeguard this. The board is required to give effect to the conditions of our integration agreement and works in consultation with the proprietor to ensure our special character is maintained and preserved.

Proprietor and board relationship

To give effect to the preservation of our special character, and the requirements of our integration agreement, the board ensures that there is adequate consultation between the board and the proprietor. The proprietor is represented on the board by proprietor's appointees. Proprietor's appointees are full members of the board with the same rights and obligations as other board members, but have additional responsibilities to preserve the special character of the school, and report to the proprietor.

The proprietor and board work together to ensure the school is a safe environment. The proprietor must ensure that the school (including buildings and grounds) is constructed and maintained to a standard that is safe for all who work at or visit the school. The board, as the PCBU, retains the primary duty of care for people at the school, meaning the board is primarily responsible for the health and safety of workers (including teachers and non-teaching staff, volunteer workers, and contractors), and others who may be affected by school operations.

Integration agreement provisions

Employment

The board complies with the employment provisions of our integration agreement, including processes for the appointment of special positions and acceptability requirements for special positions. The board consults with the proprietor or proprietor's appointee(s) in determining the acceptibility of applicants. See Appointment Policy.

As required by all integration agreements, staff members who are paid (fully or partially) through government funding do not receive payments from the proprietor or proprietor's agents additional to those set out in the Education and Training Act 2020, and do not receive more favourable work conditions than those provided to staff employed at state schools.

Enrolment

Our integration agreement outlines conditions of enrolment, which may include preference and non-preference criteria, maximum roll, and attendance dues.

We also have enrolment conditions under the Education and Training Act:

• St Joseph's School must provide preference of enrolment to children whose parents have a particular or general philosophical or religious connection with the school (Schedule 6, clause 26).
• Parents who enrol their children at St Joseph's School are taken to have accepted that a condition of enrolment is for students to participate in the general school programme that gives the school its special character (Schedule 6, clause 27).

  As set out by the Education and Training Act 2020, state-integrated schools must instruct students in accordance with the national curriculum and other regulations made under the Education and Training Act, but the general school programme must reflect the education with a special character provided by the school, and religious examples may be used to reinforce teaching throughout the school day.

  If religious instruction and observances form part of the education with a special character provided by the school, these must continue to form part of the general school programme.

  If religious instruction and observances are held at the school:

  • St Joseph's School is responsive to the sensitivities of students and parents of different religious or philosophical affiliations, and does not require students with different affiliations to participate in religious instruction and observances if a parent of the student states that they do not wish that student to participate.
  • The proprietor may employ a person (e.g. as chaplain) with responsibility for religious instruction at the school. This person is employed by the proprietor, not the board, and is not paid through board or government funding.

  Education and Training Act 2020 (Schedule 6, clause 27-29)

See Enrolment.

Any attendance dues required as a condition of enrolment in our integration agreement are approved by the Minister of Education and notified in the New Zealand Gazette. St Joseph's School only uses attendance dues for:

• improvements to the school or school buildings and associated facilities that are required by our integration agreement
• any capital works required by the Minister of Education
• meeting debts, mortgages, liens, or other charges associated with our school premises (including the land and buildings).

Attendance dues may not be used to provide improvements to a standard higher than that approved by the Secretary for Education as appropriate for a comparable state school (Schedule 6, clause 30).

See Income.

Property

The proprietor owns, holds upon trust, or leases school buildings and land, and is responsible for any insurance costs and improvements required (e.g. due to roll increase) as specified in the integration agreement. The proprietor gives the board exclusive rights to use school premises, including buildings and chattels, but maintains the right to access the property to ensure the special character of the school is being maintained (Schedule 6, clause 39 (2)(i)).

The board may grant the use of the school to the proprietor or other groups if they are not required for school purposes. The board may require anyone using school grounds or property to pay a fee to the board as a condition of use, and may not withhold use of school property from the proprietor without reasonable grounds.

See Third-Party Use of School Property.

The proprietor and board have a joint responsibility to ensure school buildings and land are safe, are not in need of repair, and meet all statutory, regulatory and Ministry design standards. The board consults with the proprietor about proposed changes to school buildings and grounds.

We comply with the following property requirements:

• all buildings with specified systems have a current building warrant for fitness
• the board identifies, eliminates, isolates and/or minimises hazards
• the proprietor is responsible for capital work to address any hazards
• an appropriate professional consultant designs and certifies all structural additions and alterations, and certification is provided to the Ministry of Education
• the school has a long-term property plan and implements it effectively.

See Finance and Asset Management Policy.

Related policies

• Board Responsibilities
• Special Character
• Appointment Policy
• Enrolment
• Income

Legislation

• Education and Training Act 2020

Release history: Term 3 2024, Term 3 2022

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