Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698752209545.pdf (New Zealand)
New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 (SR 2004/144) Pursuant to section 139AJ of the Education Act 1989, the New Zealand Teachers Council makes the following rules.
Contents Title Commencement Part 1 Preliminary provisions Purpose Requirements in rules are additional to those in Act Interpretation Meaning of relevant documentation Forms Address to send reports and complaints to Part 2 Criteria for reporting Criteria for reporting serious misconduct Criteria for reporting competence issues Part 3 Mandatory reports by employers All mandatory reports by employers must include basic information, relevant documentation, and be signed Mandatory reports of dismissals Mandatory reports of resignations Mandatory reports about former employees Page 2 2 2 2 2 4 5 5 5 7 7 8 9 10 1 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 Mandatory reports of possible serious misconduct Mandatory reports of failure to reach required level of competence Mandatory reports of applicable convictions Part 4 Making complaints Complaints about misconduct and complaints about competence 11 11 13 14 Title These rules are the New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004.
Commencement These rules come into force on 1 September 2004.

Part 1 Preliminary provisions Purpose The purpose of these rules is to ensure that the Teachers Coun­ cil receives all the information that it needs in order to inves­ tigate and otherwise fulﬁl its functions with regard to reports and complaints.

Requirements in rules are additional to those in Act The requirements in these rules about what must be included in reports are in addition to the requirements set out in the Act.
The relevant sections from the Act that relate to reports are included in these rules (in boxes) to assist users.
Interpretation In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,— Act means the Education Act 1989 applicable conviction means a conviction for an offence pun­ ishable by imprisonment for 3 months or more and which is r 1 15 16 17 18 1 2 3 4 (1) (2) 5 (1) 2 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 1 r 5 therefore the subject of a mandatory reporting obligation under section 139AP of the Act CAC means the Complaints Assessment Committee of the Teachers Council appointed under the New Zealand Teachers Council (Conduct) Rules 2004 child or young person means a person— (a) who is under the age of 16 years; or (b) who is, or was at the relevant time, a student at a school or early childhood centre complaint means any complaint to the Teachers Council under either of the following sections of the Act (a) section 139AR (complaints by any person about teacher misconduct): section 139AZC (complaints by any person about teacher competence) (b) employer means any one of the following who employs a teacher in a teaching position (a) (b) the Board of Trustees of a state school: the managers of a school registered under section 35A of the Act: the management of an early childhood education and care service: the Secretary, in his or her capacity as an employer under section 91N of the Act (c) (d) initiator means the person who makes a complaint or report to the Teachers Council registration number, in relation to a teacher, means the num­ ber that appears in the register or list of authorised persons as the teacher’s registration number report and mandatory report means any mandatory report to the Teachers Council under any of the following sections of the Act (a) section 139AK (mandatory reporting by employer of dismissals and resignations): section 139AL (mandatory reporting by employer of complaints received about former employee): section 139AM (mandatory reporting by employer of possible serious misconduct): (b) (c) 3 Part 1 r 6 New Zealand Teachers
 Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 (d) (e) section 139AN (mandatory reporting by employer of failure to reach required level of competence): section 139AP (mandatory reporting by teachers or court Registrar of applicable convictions) serious misconduct means conduct by a teacher— (a) that— (i) (ii) adversely affects, or is likely to adversely affect, the well­being or learning of 1 or more students; or reﬂects adversely on the teacher’s ﬁtness to be a teacher; and (b) is of a character or severity that meets the Teachers Council criteria for reporting serious misconduct as set out in rule 9 teacher means either of the following (a) (b) a registered teacher or former registered teacher: an authorised person (being a person who holds a limited authority to teach given under Part 10 of the Act) or former authorised person Teachers Council means the New Zealand Teachers Council established under section 139AC of the Act.
Terms that are deﬁned in section 139AB of the Act have the meanings given to them in that section, and terms that are de­ ﬁned in section 120 of the Act have the meanings given to them in that section.

Meaning of relevant documentation In these rules, relevant documentation means documentation relating to a report by an employer about a teacher that pro­ vides evidence of, or relates to, the matters referred to in the report.
(2) 6 (1) (2) Without limiting subclause (1), relevant documentation may include any or all of the following: (a) statements by the initiator, witnesses, and any other per­ sons: letters of complaint received by the employer about the teacher: recent performance appraisals of the teacher: (b) (c) 4 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 2 r 9 7 8 9 (1) (d) (e) (f) reports of independent investigators: letters between the employer or professional leader and the teacher concerning the complaint or matter of con­ cern: statements or responses, or records of statements or re­ sponses, by the teacher or his or her advocate: the teacher’s letter of resignation: (g) (h) minutes of Board meetings at which the matter was dis­ (i) cussed: other information provided by the police or any other person.
Forms If the Teachers Council provides forms for the purpose of as­ sisting people to make reports or complaints in accordance with these rules, a person may, but is not obliged to, use the relevant form when making a report or a complaint.

Address to send reports and complaints to Every report and every complaint must be sent to the Teachers Council at its current address, and be marked for the attention of the Compliance Ofﬁcer.
Part 2 Criteria for reporting Criteria for reporting serious misconduct The criterion for reporting serious misconduct is that an em­ ployer suspects on reasonable grounds that a teacher has en­ gaged in any of the following: (a) the physical abuse of a child or young person (which includes physical abuse carried out under the direction, or with the connivance, of the teacher): the sexual abuse of a child or young person (which in­ cludes sexual abuse carried out under the direction, or with the connivance, of the teacher): the psychological abuse of a child or young person, which may include (but is not limited to) physical abuse of another person, or damage to property, inﬂicted in (b) (c) 5 Part 2 r 9 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) (i) (j) (k) (l) (m) (n) front of a child or young person, threats of physical or sexual abuse, and harassment: being involved in an inappropriate relationship with any person under the age of 16 years: being involved in an inappropriate relationship with a student with whom the teacher is, or was when the re­ lationship commenced, in contact with as a result of his or her position as a teacher: the neglect or ill­treatment of any child or young person in the teacher’s care: the neglect or ill­treatment of any animal in the teacher’s care: theft, or fraud: involvement in the manufacture, cultivation, supply, dealing, or use of controlled drugs: permitting, or acquiescing in, the manufacture, cultiva­ tion, supply, dealing, or use of controlled drugs by any child or young person: viewing, accessing, or possessing pornographic mater­ ial while on school premises or engaged on school busi­ ness: viewing, accessing, or possessing pornographic mater­ ial that depicts children or young persons or that depicts animals engaged in sexual acts with humans: breaching the school’s standards or rules concerning the use of alcohol at the school or while on school business: any other act or omission that could be the subject of a prosecution for an offence punishable by imprisonment for a term of 3 months or more.
(2) Physical, sexual, or psychological abuse is reportable whether it occurs as— (a) (b) a single act; or a number of acts forming part of a pattern of behaviour, even if some or all of those acts, viewed in isolation, would be minor or trivial.

(3) In this rule, school includes an early childhood centre.
6 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 3 r 11 10 11 (1) (2) (3) Criteria for reporting competence issues For the purposes of section 139AL(3)(b) of the Act, the criter­ ion for reporting competence issues about a teacher is that the employer would not, if asked, sign the teacher’s practising cer­ tiﬁcate renewal application because of doubts about whether the teacher meets the satisfactory teacher dimensions.
Part 3 Mandatory reports by employers All mandatory reports by employers must include basic information, relevant documentation, and be signed Every mandatory report made by an employer about a teacher must include the following information: (a) the name and address of the employer making the re­ port: the date of the report: the teacher’s full name, registration number, date of birth, and last known address: if the teacher has a former or alternative name, the for­ mer or alternative name (if known).
(b) (c) (d) Every mandatory report made by an employer must include with it copies of all relevant documentation.

If some of the relevant documentation is not included in the report, the em­ ployer must identify which information is missing and must indicate (so far as possible) where it may be obtained.
Every mandatory report made by an employer must be signed by the employer, or by a person on behalf of the employer, in which case the person must also provide his or her name in a legible form, and state the capacity in which he or she is signing.
7 Part 3 r 12 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 Section 139AK of the Education Act 1989: Mandatory reporting of dismissals and resignations “(1) When an employer dismisses a teacher for any reason, the employer must immediately report the dismissal to the Teachers Council.
“(2) An employer must immediately report to the Teachers Council when a teacher resigns from a teaching position if, within the 12 months preceding the resignation, the employer had advised the teacher that it was dissatisﬁed with, or intended to investigate, any aspect of the conduct of the teacher, or the teacher’s com­ petence.
“(3) Every report under this section must be in writ­ ing, and must include,— “(a) “(b) in the case of a report of dismissal, the reason for the dismissal; and in the case of a report of a resignation,— a description of the conduct or “(i) competency issues that the em­ ployer had been concerned about; and a report of what action (if any) the employer had taken with re­ spect to the conduct or compe­ tency issues.
“(ii) 12 Mandatory reports of dismissals A report under section 139AK(1) of the Act of the dismissal of a teacher must— (a) (b) comply with rule 11; and include a full description of the background to the dis­ missal, including a description of any complaints or reviews preceding the dismissal, what action the em­ ployer took prior to the dismissal, and what action the teacher took; and 8 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 3 r 13 (c) state the date on which the dismissal was given and the date on which it took effect.
13 Mandatory reports of resignations A report under section 139AK(2) of the Act of the resignation of a teacher within 12 months of the employer advising the teacher that the employer was dissatisﬁed with, or intended to investigate, any aspect of the conduct of the teacher, or the teacher’s competence, must— (a) (b) comply with rule 11; and describe the advice that the employer gave to the teacher concerning dissatisfaction with any aspect of the teacher’s conduct or competence; and describe the teacher’s response and any further action by the employer; and state the date on which the teacher resigned, and the date on which the resignation took effect.
(c) (d) Section 139AL of the Education Act 1989: Mandatory re­ porting of complaints received about former employees “(1) The former employer of a teacher must im­ mediately report to the Teachers Council if, within 12 months after a teacher ceases to be employed by the employer, the employer re­ ceives a complaint about the teacher’s conduct or competence while he or she was an em­ ployee.
“(2) Every report under this section— “(a) must be in writing; and “(b) must set out the nature of the complaint; and “(c) may include any additional information that the employer considers relevant.
“(3) A former employer must not report a complaint under this section if— “(a) it is satisﬁed that the complaint is mali­ cious, vexatious, or without any founda­ tion; or 9 Part 3 r 14 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 “(b) the complaint is about competence, and the complaint does not meet the Teach­ ers Council’s criteria for reporting about competence issues.
14 Mandatory reports about former employees A report under section 139AL of the Act by a former em­ ployer of a teacher concerning a complaint received about the teacher’s conduct or competence while employed by the em­ ployer must— (a) (b) comply with rule 11; and state the date on which the teacher ceased to be em­ ployed by the employer; and state the date on which the employer received the com­ plaint; and set out the complaint; and include a statement that the employer is satisﬁed that the complaint is not malicious, vexatious, or without any foundation; and if the complaint is about competence, include a state­ ment that the employer believes that the complaint sat­ isﬁes the Teachers Council criteria for reporting com­ petence issues as set out in rule 10.
(c) (d) (e) (f) Section 139AM of the Education Act 1989: Mandatory re­ porting of possible serious misconduct “(1) The employer of a teacher must immediately report to the Teachers Council if it has reason to believe that the teacher has engaged in serious misconduct.
“(a) “(b) “(2) Every report under this section must— be in writing; and include a description of the conduct of the teacher that the employer believes to be serious misconduct; and 10 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 3 r 16 “(c) include a description of what action (if any) the employer has taken in relation to it.
15 Mandatory reports of possible serious misconduct (1) A report under section 139AM of the Act by an employer that the employer has reason to believe that a teacher has engaged in serious misconduct must— (a) (b) comply with rule 11; and describe the conduct that the employer believes may be serious misconduct; and describe the action, if any, that the employer has taken in response to that conduct.

(c) (2) The Teachers Council criteria for reporting serious misconduct are set out in rule 9.
Section 139AN of the Education Act 1989: Mandatory reporting of failure to reach required level of competence “(1) The employer of a teacher must immediately report to the Teachers Council if it is satis­ ﬁed that, despite undertaking competency pro­ cedures with the teacher, the teacher has not reached the required level of competence.
“(a) “(b) “(2) Every report under this section must— be in writing; and include a description of the competency issues leading to the report; and include a description of the action that the employer has taken in relation to it.
“(c) 16 Mandatory reports of failure to reach required level of competence (1) A report under section 139AN of the Act by an employer that, despite undertaking competence procedures with a teacher, 11 Part 3 r 16 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 the teacher has not reached the required level of competence, must— (a) (b) comply with rule 11; and describe the competence issues that originally caused concern; and describe the competence procedures undertaken with the teacher; and describe the competence issues currently causing con­ cern.
(c) (d) The relevant documentation included in a report under section 139AN of the Act must include— (a) copies of reports on, or assessments of, the teacher’s competence in the areas causing concern; and any responses or comments by the teacher; and the names and contact details of any person with rele­ vant information about the teacher’s competence or the competence procedures undertaken.
(b) (c) Section 139AP of the Education Act 1989: Mandatory re­ porting of convictions “(1) Every teacher who is convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment for 3 months or more must, within 7 days of conviction, report the conviction to the Teachers Council.

“(2) Failure to report a conviction to the Teachers Council in accordance with subsection (1) is misconduct that may give rise to disciplinary proceedings.
“(3) The Registrar of every court must, unless the court expressly orders otherwise in a particular case, report to the Teachers Council when a person whom the Registrar believes to be, or to have been, a teacher is convicted of an offence punishable by imprisonment for 3 months or more.
If the Registrar has reported a conviction to the Teachers Council under subsection (3), then, if that conviction is subsequently quashed, the “(4) (2) 12 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Part 3 r 17 Registrar must notify the Teachers Council of that fact.
17 Mandatory reports of applicable convictions (1) A report under section 139AP of the Act by a teacher of an applicable conviction must be made— (a) in writing in accordance with subclause (2), within 7 days of the conviction; or orally, within 7 days of the conviction, in which case it must be conﬁrmed in writing within 14 days of the conviction.
(2) A report by a teacher under section 139AP of the Act (whether written or oral) must include— (a) the teacher’s name, registration number, date of birth, and address; and details of the offence for which the teacher was con­ victed; and the name of the court in which the conviction was en­ tered.
(b) (b) (c) (3) In order to assist the CAC in the investigation of an applicable conviction that it must make (under section 139AV of the Act), the report may also include— (a) (b) a statement of the sentence imposed (if known); and a statement of whether the teacher intends to appeal the conviction or sentence (if known); and a description of the circumstances giving rise to the con­ viction; and any information that the teacher considers will assist the CAC in its investigation.
(c) (d) (4) A report under section 139AP of the Act by a Registrar— (a) must include a certiﬁcate of conviction; and (b) must include as much of the information referred to in subclause (2) as is available to the Registrar; and (c) may include any of the information referred to in sub­ clause (3).
13 Part 4 r 18 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 Part 4 Making complaints Complaints about misconduct and complaints about competence 18 (1) A complaint to the Teachers Council about the conduct of a teacher (under section 139AR of the Act) or about a teacher’s competence (under section 139AZC of the Act) may be made in any written form.
In order for a complaint to be actioned by the Teachers Council it must include as much as possible of the following informa­ tion: (a) (2) the teacher’s full name and any alternative names by which the teacher is or may be known: the teacher’s date of birth (if known): a description of the conduct or the competence issues complained of: a description of the outcome that the initiator wishes to achieve in making the complaint: a description of steps already taken in respect of the matter complained of, and in particular, whether the complaint has been referred to the teacher’s current em­ ployer; and— (i) (ii) if not, why not; and if it has, what steps the employer has taken.
(3) A complaint by an employer or former employer under either section 139AR of the Act or section 139AZC of the Act must include,— (a) in the case of a complaint about conduct, a report of any action that the employer or former employer has taken in relation to it (as required by section 139AR(3) of the Act); or in the case of a complaint about competence, a descrip­ tion of the competency issues leading to the complaint and the actions (if any) taken by the employer in rela­ tion to them (as required by section 139AZC(3) of the Act).
Dated at Wellington this 26th day of May 2004.

Joanna Beresford, 14 (b) (c) (d) (e) (b) Reprinted as at 4 September 2007 New Zealand Teachers Council (Making Reports and Complaints) Rules 2004 Chairperson of the New Zealand Teachers Council.

Explanatory note This note is not part of the rules, but is intended to indicate their general effect.
These rules, which come into force on 1 September 2004, set out the New Zealand Teachers Council rules that— •• identify the criteria for reporting serious misconduct and for reporting competence issues: give the general requirements for making reports and com­ plaints about teachers under the Education Act 1989: give speciﬁc requirements about what information must be in­ cluded in speciﬁc types of reports and complaints under that Act.
•• •• Issued under the authority of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989.

Date of notiﬁcation in Gazette: 3 June 2004.

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