How Charter Schools Differ from State Schools

State Schools: Crown entities with objectives and powers defined by legislation.
Charter Schools: Operated by sponsors who have contracts with the Crown (Charter School Agency). General requirements are in legislation; specific targets and characteristics are in individual contracts.

State Schools: Governed by school boards accountable to the parent community.
Charter Schools: Governed by sponsors accountable to the Crown under the charter contract and a performance management framework. Sponsors have flexible governance arrangements and are not required to include parent or community representation.

State Schools: Monitored by the Education Review Office (ERO) on various indicators of student achievement, engagement, and well-being.
Intervention: The Minister or Secretary of Education can intervene if there’s a risk to the school’s operation or student welfare/performance. Financially at-risk schools receive advice and assistance from the Ministry of Education.
Charter Schools: Also subject to ERO monitoring. Sponsors must meet performance targets in their contracts, or they may face interventions such as providing specific information, carrying out actions, ERO reviews, sponsor replacement, or contract termination.
Charter School Authorisation Board: Decides on the use and level of interventions based on the issue at hand.

State Schools:
- Receive operational grants from the Minister of Education, based on student numbers, year levels, educational needs, and location.
- Teacher numbers are determined by legislation and funded by the Ministry.
- Boards and principals cannot give performance-based rewards to staff.
- Property funding is managed by the Ministry.
- Eligible for Ministry-funded services like school transport, professional development, and learner support.
- School boards manage a small portion of discretionary funding after salaries and property costs are covered by the Crown.
Charter Schools:
- Funding is similar to state schools but is mostly provided as cash per student.
- Can be not-for-profit or for-profit. They can make a profit by meeting targets at lower costs, e.g., through efficient property management.
- Sponsors must produce annual, independently audited financial reports.
- Cannot charge tuition fees, except for international students. Some may charge property-related fees as outlined in contracts.

State Schools: Must follow the New Zealand Curriculum or Te Marautanga o Aotearoa, along with national curriculum guidelines.
Charter Schools: Can develop their own curriculum, but it must ensure teaching standards are on par with state schools for the same year levels. They must also meet their set performance targets.

Source: Charter School Agency NZ