The first tranche of the new education professionals who will help provide learning support to children in more than
1,000 schools and kura has now been allocated, Associate Education Minister Tracey Martin announced today.
“This Government is rebuilding our education system so that it is fair and meets the needs of all students, including
the one in five who need extra support,” Tracey Martin said.
“The 623 new Learning Support Coordinators (LSCs) starting in January are an integral part of a more flexible and
joined-up approach to learning support, called the Learning Support Delivery Model, which is already being implemented
across New Zealand.
“The LSCs will work alongside teachers and with specialist providers and parents to ensure children and young people
receive the support they need to learn. They will be fulltime, qualified teachers and focus on identifying the learning
support that students need. Ministry of Education staff will then be responsible for accessing the supports and services
that are required.
“The LSCs will not have other classroom teaching or management responsibilities and it is a funded role that is
additional to the SENCOs that some schools currently have.
“Budget 2019 included an extra $217 million of operating funding over four years to cover the cost of the new positions.
“This first tranche of coordinators will work in the schools and clusters that are the most advanced in working within
the Learning Support Delivery Model.
“An example is in the Ōtūmoetai Kāhui Ako (learning cluster) where the early learning services, kōhanga reo, schools and
kura have identified their local needs and resources and work with other agencies and providers to plan the support
their children need.
“There are around 300,000 students covered in this initial allocation and there will be approximately one Learning
Support Coordinator for every 500 students, though the allocation model recognises the different needs of various
schools and regions including rural and urban dimensions.
“Coordinators may work across several smaller schools in the same cluster, or several LSCs may work in one very large
school.
“I have ensured they will work in a wide range of different types of schools and settings, so we can test the new role
in practice and make any necessary adjustments, before it is rolled out more widely in future years.
“To help schools ensure they have suitable working space for the coordinators, a new capital allocation of $95 million
was also included in Budget 2019 to be spent once the placement of Learning Support Coordinators has been determined by
schools and clusters.
“We have consistently heard that people place a high priority on having a dedicated learning support role in schools and
this new workforce will be a game-changer for kids with learning needs,” Tracey Martin said.
Notes for Editors
Allocation of first tranche across student and school type:
Learning Support Coordinator roles623Learning support clusters124Total number of schools1,052Rural schools350Māori Medium kura28Total number of students300,750Māori students89,694Pacific students34,701
The role:
• support students in schools and kura
• work with teachers and kaiako in schools and kura
• work with parents, family and whānau
• work with other LSCs across a cluster of schools and kura, and connect with the Ministry’s Learning Support
Facilitator function and the Learning Support Delivery Model.
• work with the school or kura leadership team to plan support for all learners.
More detailed information about the allocation of Learning Support Coordinators and their role description is available
on the Education Conversation website here: https://conversation.education.govt.nz/conversations/learning-support-action-plan/learning-support-coordinators
ends