Education (Proposed Investment Plans: Content and Submission; Assessment Criteria; and Plan Summaries) Notice 2025
Pursuant to section 424 and clauses 6 and 24, Schedule 18 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (“Act”), the Tertiary Education Commission (“TEC”) gives the following notice.
This notice may be cited as the Education (Proposed Investment Plans: Content and Submission; Assessment Criteria; and Plan Summaries) Notice 2025.
This notice applies from 2 April 2025.
This notice revokes and replaces the following notice:
Pursuant to the Act, TEC gives public notice of the following:
Several of the funding mechanisms determined by the Minister for Vocational Education and/or the Minister for Universities under section 419 of the Act specify funding to be paid by TEC to eligible tertiary education organisations (“TEOs”) via Plans.
A TEO that is seeking funding from TEC under those funding mechanisms must submit a proposed Plan (unless TEC has exempted a TEO from the requirement to submit a proposed Plan in accordance with clause 9, Schedule 18 of the Act).
All proposed Plans should have a three-year planning horizon. TEC may approve Plans for a period of one, two, or three years.
Where content or criteria below refer to learners most in need, TEOs must consider a range of groups such as those from low socio-economic backgrounds, with low prior achievement, or who are disabled, neurodiverse, Māori and/or Pacific.
A previous or current allocation of TEC funding does not entitle a TEO to future funding at any level from TEC.
Pursuant to clause 6(1)(a), Schedule 18 of the Act, TEC gives public notice of the content of TEOs’ proposed Plans (being the particular matters that proposed Plans must address or include in order to meet the requirements in clause 4, Schedule 18).
The amount of detail that a TEO includes in the proposed Plan will vary depending on the size, type, and complexity of the TEO submitting the Plan. TEC recommends that TEOs use the provided templates to develop their proposed Plans, or if not, use the headings from the provided templates when creating their own documents.
Pursuant to clause 4(c), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO must describe its mission and role for the term of the proposed Plan. The TEO must specify its role within the overall network of provision, any changes to its mission and role since its last Plan as approved by TEC, and any planned changes to its mission and role during the period covered by the proposed Plan.
The TEO must explain significant changes to the mix of programmes and activities being proposed (including new areas of provision, changes to the regional breakdown of provision, and/or changes to provision of TEC’s investment priorities), from its previous Plan (if relevant) and how these are consistent with the TEO’s mission and role during the term of the Plan.
A TEO’s proposed Plan must demonstrate that the TEO has developed a sustainable plan for fulfilling its specified mission and role through its programmes and activities, and that it has made reasonable progress on activities that contribute to its mission and role since its last Plan.
To reflect section 4(d) of the Act (the purpose of the Act), the TEO must provide evidence of how it will contribute to an education system that honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi (“Te Tiriti”) during the term of the proposed Plan.
Pursuant to clause 4(a), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO must describe in its proposed Plan how the TEO will give effect to the Government’s current and medium-term priorities described in the Tertiary Education Strategy (TES), and, if the TEO has previously received funding via a Plan, what the TEO has achieved since its last Plan to contribute to the achievement of those priorities. Proposed Plans must respond to the priorities that TEC sets in its Plan Guidance and other strategic documents to implement the TES.
Pursuant to clause 4(b), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO must describe how it will address the needs of interested persons or bodies (including, without limitation, learners enrolled with the TEO) (“key stakeholders”). The TEO must include information about:
The TEC requires, pursuant to clause 6(1)(b), Schedule 18 of the Act, that each TEO that is receiving $5 million or more in funding from TEC (based on the final on-Plan funding allocation for 2025) must provide either:
A TEO that is applying to receive $5 million or more in on-Plan funding for the first time must provide an LSP with their Plan.
An LSP must:
If TEC determines that a TEO’s LSP or LSP progress update is incomplete or inadequate, TEC may request that the TEO resubmit the LSP or LSP progress update at any time. If a TEO makes changes to its LSP that have not been requested by TEC, it must explain why the changes are necessary.
An LSP progress update must detail:
LSPs and LSP progress updates must be approved by the TEO’s Council or Board.
Pursuant to clause 6(1)(b), Schedule 18 of the Act, each TEO that is receiving $5 million or more in funding from TEC (based on the final on-Plan funding allocation for 2025) is required to submit and publish either:
DAP progress updates must detail:
Proposed Plans should include links to the published DAP and/or DAP progress update(s).
If TEC determines that a TEO’s DAP or DAP progress update is incomplete or inadequate, TEC may request that the TEO resubmit it at any time.
DAPs and DAP progress updates must be approved by the TEO’s Council or Board.
Pursuant to clause 4(d), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO must set out a description of all tertiary education programmes and activities (including, without limitation, programmes and initiatives that are to be undertaken by the TEO in order to build its capability) for which it is seeking funding, and specify the amount of funding that is being sought in relation to those programmes and activities.
Pursuant to clause 4(f), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO must also set out a description of all tertiary education programmes that it runs other than those for which it is seeking funding.
The description of programmes and activities must include:
Pursuant to clause 4(e), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO’s proposed Plan must describe the TEO’s proposed outcomes (including, without limitation, in relation to the tertiary education programmes and activities for which funding is sought) and the performance indicators that the TEO will use to measure whether those outcomes have been achieved.
The TEO’s proposed outcomes and performance indicators (commitments) must be:
Performance commitments must be provided via the applicable Educational Performance Indicator Commitments (EPICs) templates.
TEC will provide TEOs with information about any specific metrics they must use when specifying performance commitments, and in some cases will specify minimum performance commitments for TEOs.
TEOs must submit additional performance commitments if required by TEC.
If a TEO has previously submitted performance commitments for a given year and they are not being amended (ie, they already comply with the requirements specified above), the TEO is not required to resubmit commitments for that year.
Where quality assurance (including External Evaluation and Review (EER) and other activities through the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA)) has identified concerns, TEC may require a TEO to submit additional information in its proposed Plan.
Any TEO that has received a Category 3 or 4 EER assessment at the time of submitting its proposed Plan must include a specific narrative in the Strategic Intent section of its proposed Plan that responds to the relevant concerns identified by NZQA.
If TEC determines that a TEO’s educational performance is of concern, TEC may require the TEO address this in their LSP or LSP update, and/or submit an improvement plan.
Pursuant to clause 6(1)(b), Schedule 18 of the Act, TEC may require each TEO to provide additional information about its financial outlook to accompany its proposed Plan. Information about financial outlook includes any information and explanations needed to fairly reflect the forecast financial operations and financial position of the TEO.
Pursuant to clause 6(2), Schedule 18 of the Act, for a private training establishment (“PTE”) TEC requires the PTE to provide information to enable TEC to determine whether the PTE is meeting TEC’s Prudential Financial Standards for PTEs.
Pursuant to clause 6(2), Schedule 18 of the Act, TEC requires that, in addition to meeting the requirements set out in Part 1A of this notice, a tertiary education institution’s (“TEI”) proposed Plan must:
Pursuant to clause 6(2), Schedule 18 of the Act, Te Pūkenga must demonstrate how its proposed Plan aligns with its charter as set out in Schedule 13 of the Act. Where appropriate, it should also include details on regional decision making about delivery and operations that support regional needs.
Pursuant to section 376(1) of the Act, a TEO that seeks funding for apprenticeship training activities (as defined in section 376(2) of the Act) via a Plan must specify in its proposed Plan how it intends to carry out each apprenticeship training activity.
Pursuant to clause 6(1)(c), Schedule 18 of the Act, TEC gives public notice of the timetables and process for the submission of proposed Plans to TEC. TEC can decide not to accept a proposed Plan that it receives after the relevant dates specified in the timetable below.
All proposed Plans should be submitted by 4 July 2025.
Activity |
Timing |
TEC publishes a notice in the New Zealand Gazette setting out requirements for Plan content, timetable, assessment and Plan summaries |
Early March 2025 |
TEC releases Plan Guidance and Plan engagement begins |
Early March 2025 |
Government announces Budget 2025 |
May 2025 |
TEC provides indicative allocations |
From 3 June 2025 |
TEC releases Plan-related templates |
From 9 June 2025 |
TEC releases Supplementary Plan Guidance to reflect any policy or Budget changes |
June 2025 |
TEOs submit proposed Plans |
By 4 July 2025 |
TEC reviews proposed Plans and has further discussion with providers as needed |
July – October 2025 |
Providers are notified of decisions in writing |
From November 2025 |
Pursuant to section 424(1) of the Act, TEC gives public notice of the criteria it will use to assess proposed Plans to determine if they are to receive funding approval.
The criteria below enable TEC to assess the extent to which the TEO’s proposed Plan will contribute to achieving Government priorities (outlined in the TES, Plan Guidance, and other strategic documents), learner success outcomes, and address regional and national needs, as well as the TEO’s capability to deliver on its proposed Plan.
When assessing proposed Plans against the criteria, TEC will take a holistic approach and may use a range of evidence, including, without limitation:
TEC also considers other factors in its investment decisions which may be outside of TEC’s and/or TEOs’ control, such as (but not limited to) available funding, merit relative to other proposed Plans, skills needs and the network of provision.
TEC will assess each proposed Plan using the following criteria:
Whether the proposed Plan:
Whether and to what extent the proposed Plan gives TEC confidence that the TEO:
Whether and to what extent the proposed Plan gives TEC confidence that the TEO:
Whether and to what extent the proposed Plan identifies an appropriate range of stakeholders which may include:
Whether, and to what extent, the proposed Plan gives TEC confidence that the TEO:
Whether and to what extent the LSP demonstrates:
Whether and to what extent the LSP progress update demonstrates:
Whether and to what extent the TEO’s DAP:
Whether and to what extent the TEO’s DAP progress update demonstrates:
Whether the TEO’s Plan includes a link to its published DAP and DAP progress update(s).
Whether and to what extent the proposed Plan and the TEO’s past delivery and performance gives TEC confidence that:
The extent to which a TEO seeking funding for apprenticeship training activities (as defined in section 376(2) of the Act) via a Plan has specified in its proposed Plan how it intends to carry out each of those activities.
Whether and to what extent the outcomes and performance commitments proposed in the TEO’s Plan, and the TEO’s past performance, give TEC confidence that the performance commitments are:
If a TEO’s Plan is required to address quality assurance issues (including Category 3 or 4 EER assessments), TEC will consider whether and to what extent the TEO has provided a robust plan to address identified issues and given TEC confidence that learners will be appropriately supported.
Where a TEO is required to address educational performance concerns, TEC will consider whether and to what extent the TEO has adequately addressed identified concerns and given TEC confidence that performance will improve.
Pursuant to section 424(3) of the Act, for TEIs only, TEC will assess whether the TEI meets the expectations expressed in this notice regarding the inclusion of a forecast Statement of Service Performance in its proposed Plan.
Pursuant to section 424(3) of the Act, for Te Pūkenga only, TEC will assess whether, and to what extent, Te Pūkenga’s proposed Plan gives TEC confidence that the planned activities align with all elements of its charter as set out in Schedule 13 of the Act.
Where appropriate, TEC will assess whether and to what extent details on regional decision making about delivery and operations that support regional needs are included in the proposed Plan.
Pursuant to section 424(2) of the Act, for wānanga, TEC will assess how the activities of the wānanga (other than those activities that contribute towards the Government’s priorities set out in the TES) support the functions and purposes of the wānanga.
Pursuant to clause 24(1), Schedule 18 of the Act, TEC gives public notice of the matters that a TEO must include in a Plan summary.
A TEO must include in its Plan summary all the material described in Part 1 of this notice.
TEIs must also include in their Plan summary their forecast Statement of Service Performance.
Nothing in this notice requires a TEO to include in its Plan summary information that would:
As required by clause 24(2), Schedule 18 of the Act, the TEO’s Plan summary must be available for inspection by the public and copies of the TEO’s Plan summary must be obtainable, either at no cost or no more than a reasonable cost.
Dated at Wellington this 5th day of March 2025.
TIM FOWLER, Chief Executive, Tertiary Education Commission.
i. These include all subsidiaries, trusts, or in-substance subsidiaries. They must cover all entities included in the TEO’s consolidated group reporting in its most recent Annual Report.
ii. Refer to sections 306(4) and (5) of the Act and section 156 of the Crown Entities Act 2004.