Government to fast track residency for primary teachers amid shortage

Education Minister Erica Stanford. Photo / File

The Government is adding offshore primary school teachers to the straight-to-residence pathway from next month in response to an unexpected staff shortage.

The Ministry of Education’s annual Teacher Demand and Supply Planning Projection has warned that schools could be short by 1250 teachers this year due to immigration-driven roll growth and increased classroom release time for teachers.

The shortfall comes after a forecasting error last year, when the ministry incorrectly predicted an oversupply of teachers for 2025.

Education and Immigration Minister Erica Stanford told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking she pushed for the change after discovering the Ministry of Education’s workforce data was unreliable.

“At the end of last year, officials brought me a report and, shortly after, they came back and told me: ‘Minister, our data is wholly unreliable,’” Stanford said.

Stanford said a similar move for secondary school teachers last year had proven effective.

“When I became minister in 2023, the data showed we were going to be hundreds of secondary teachers short. I moved immediately to put them on the immediate residency pathway and we’ve since seen a strong uptick in arrivals,” she said.

Last year, the Government shifted secondary school teachers to the Straight to Residence pathway, which resulted in 480 new teachers.

A further 1200 people were supported with an Overseas Relocation Grant of up to $10,000 when coming to New Zealand.

Stanford said the immigration change was just one part of the puzzle.

“We need to focus on on-site training, scholarships and encouraging young people into teaching,” she said.

She said has directed the ministry to produce regional workforce data for the first time.

Further measures will be considered in this year’s Budget.

From March 26, the streamlined process will allow eligible primary teachers with a job offer to apply for residence from offshore.

They will be able to apply for residence without first working for two years, provided they have an employment offer from an accredited employer.

Relevant roles include primary and intermediate teachers as well as Māori-medium equivalents.

Through a $53 million investment, the Government has doubled the School Onsite Training Programme (SOTP).

Ministry of Education workforce deputy secretary Anna Welanyk acknowledged the mistake with RNZ, saying the 2023 forecast had failed to account for changes in teachers’ collective agreements, including additional classroom release time and non-contact hours.

Primary schools are expected to need an additional 1000 teachers this year, largely due to net migration, while secondary schools will require 400 more teachers.

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