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| 1. Complaints can range from allegations of serious misconduct requiring full investigation, to issues that, due to their character or content, are capable of quick resolution. To decide how best to address any complaint, the NZ Teachers Council wants to receive - and by law is required to give you the opportunity to provide - any response or comments you wish to make. All of this will be set out in a formal letter sent to you.
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| 2. It is expected that most complaints will be referred back to your employer to resolve. The thrust of the Act is for local resolution where appropriate.
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| 3. If the complaint is about conduct it may be referred to the CAC. If you are asked to respond to the complaint by the CAC or the NZ Teachers Council you should:
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| 4. While it is the disciplinary functions of the NZ Teachers Council that have been the focus of attention, the Act puts 'providing professional leadership' first, in the Council's list of functions. This is the primary goal of the NZ Teachers Council. To this end, the CAC (and the NZ Teachers Council when dealing with competence complaints) has the power to resolve complaints by agreement. Therefore it follows that a constructive response is one that is forward-looking, showing insight into what has caused the complaint as well as suggesting ways to resolve the complaint.
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| 5. Receiving a complaint can be upsetting. You may feel badly about the matter complained of, aggrieved that a complaint has been made or any range of emotions. It is therefore important to acknowledge the impact a complaint may have and to seek assistance and support from advisors and senior colleagues.
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| 6. A prompt comprehensive response from you is a key element in enabling the CAC or the NZ Teachers Council to resolve the complaint, or to undertake an investigation to achieve early resolution. |
Hearings are usually held at the Teachers Council offices located at 93 The Terrace, Wellingon. You can contact the Senior Advisor: Teacher Practice (legal@teacherscouncil.govt.nz) to arrange a time for your hearing.
Yes, you are entitled to have a representative or support person present. You or your representative may want to make opening remarks, then the Committee members will ask you questions. The meetings will be informal though it is important to be aware that an outcome of a CAC investigation can be referral to the Disciplinary Tribunal.
No, you are allowed to represent yourself, although you are encouraged to be represented by counsel. You can also be represented by a lay advocate, who will have the same rights and privileges as a lawyer during the hearing.
You are entitled to object to any member of the Complaints Assessment Committee or the Disciplinary Tribunal appointed to consider your case, if you believe that they have a conflict of interest, or may be perceived to have a conflict of interest. You have five working days from when you were notified of the members' names, to lodge an objection. If your objection is upheld the member will be replaced. If you believe the replacement member also has a conflict of interest, you may object to that member too.
Employment issues and registration or professional issues are not dealt with under the same jurisdiction. The Rules are drafted to avoid unnecessary duplication, while recognising that the public interest justifies some conduct being dealt with at a national level.
This is not a matter that is within the jurisdiction of the NZ Teachers Council or the Disciplinary Tribunal.
The professional leader can apply to the Manager, Registration for an extension to teach so that support given through advice and guidance can be implemented.
How such matters will be dealt with will vary depending on the circumstances. Any information that is retained on your file will have with it such correcting or contrary information as you choose to provide.
Under s127(1)(a) of the Education Act 1989 you can request that your registration be expired and your name be removed from the register. You must make such a request in writing and it must be signed by you. It should also clearly state that you are requesting deregistration under s127(1)(a). You should direct your request to the attention of the Manager, Registration.
Please note that expiry of registration under s127(1)(e) does not prevent the NZ Teachers Council or the Disciplinary Tribunal from considering deregistration. You will not be deregistered if you are subject of an investigation under Part 10A of The Education Act 1989.
By law you are required to notify the NZ Teachers Council when:
Click here for more information.
Yes, the Act requires you to report to the Council if it is a complaint about the conduct or competence of the teacher while they were employed at your school, and if the teacher left within the last twelve months.
The Act requires complaints to be made to the learning centre first in most cases, so most complaints received about your teachers will be referred to you to deal with. Under the Act, and consistent with the Council's role of professional leadership, you may be asked to inform the Council or the CAC of the outcome of your investigation.
If the NZ Teachers Council does not consider it appropriate to refer the complaint to you to deal with, you will still be informed that the complaint has been received. You may be asked to provide information to assist the NZ Teachers Council or CAC investigation.
The NZ Teachers Council's expectation is that in most cases the teacher's professional leader is in the best position to help the teacher reach the required levels of competence. The Council will not conduct a competency review or advice and guidance process on top of any process that a learning centre is engaged in unless exceptional circumstances apply. These circumstances are outlined in the Act.
Serious misconduct is defined in Rule 5 of the Making Reports and Complaints Rules as follows: "Serious misconduct" means conduct by a teacher-
(a) That-
(i) Adversely affects, or is likely to adversely affect, the well-being or learning of 1 or more students; or
(ii) Reflects adversely on the teacher's fitness to be a teacher; and
(b) Is of a character or severity that meets the Teachers Council's criteria for reporting serious misconduct as set out in rule 9.
The Teachers Council's criteria for reporting serious misconduct are set out in Rule 9 of the New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004.
The Education Act requires you to immediately report to the NZ Teachers Council when you have reason to believe that one of your teachers has engaged in serious misconduct. In many cases such a belief will not be held until there is an investigation by the learning centre. If a complaint of misconduct is made to you about one of your teachers, you should follow your normal learning centre processes to investigate it. At any time that you decide that you have reason to believe that the teacher did engage in serious misconduct, that is the time that a report to the Council must be made. You should not stop your investigation when you have reported to the Council.
Serious misconduct is defined in the New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004
Yes. You are referred to s139AK of the Education Act.
The report should include sufficient details for the CAC to understand the nature of the incident. This will enable prompt resolution of the matter.
Section 139AN of the Act requires you to immediately report to the Teachers Council if you are satisfied that, despite undertaking competency procedures with the teacher, the teacher has not reached the required level of competence. This requirement is not affected by the category of registration held by the teacher.
The NZ Teachers Council requires 'all relevant information' in order for the matter to be fully and fairly considered. Direct evidence, such as signed witness statements and file notes, rather than documents containing comments of other people, have greater evidential value. 'Relevant documentation' is defined in Rule 6 of the New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 as follows:
(1) In these rules, relevant documentation means documentation
relating to a report by an employer about a teacher that
provides evidence of, or relates to, the matters referred to in
the report.
(2) Without limiting subclause (1), relevant documentation may
include any or all of the following:
(a) statements by the initiator, witnesses and any other persons:
(b) letters of complaint received by the employer about the teacher:
(c) recent performance appraisals of the teacher:
(d) reports of independent investigators:
(e) letters between the employer or professional leader and the teacher concerning the complaint or matter of concern:
(f) statement or responses, or records of these statements or responses received from the teacher or his or her advocate:
(g) the teacher's letter of resignation:
(h) minutes of Board meetings at which the matter was discussed:
(i) other information provided by the police or any other person.
If you require further details, please contact the Senior Advisor: Teacher Practice (legal@teacherscouncil.govt.nz).
The NZ Teachers Council sends the teacher a copy of all information that is received concerning him or her, in accordance with the Privacy Act 1993 and the rules of natural justice. The teacher must be given an early opportunity to answer the allegations that have been made against him or her, and an opportunity to correct any information held on his or her file. The NZ Teachers Council will not generally consider any documents that the teacher has not seen. If confidentiality is requested by the person making the complaint, the documents will usually be returned.
Under the Act there is a two-step process:
Consideration may be held up by factors such as delays in obtaining information, requests by the teacher for more time, or a lack of available hearing time. Cases are seldom concluded in less than two months, 3-4 months being the average timeframe.
The new mandatory reporting requirements became effective on 1 September 2004. Click here for more information.
