Kia ora Elspeth,

Thank you for your email.

We have escalated your Official Information Act request to our Ministerial team for further assistance.

Should you have any further questions, please feel free to contact [email address]

Ngā mihi,

Rosalie
Customer Care Representative | Kanohi Kaitiaki Kiritaki
Channels team | Te rōpu whai ara
Customer Experience and Analytics | Te Āheinga Tari/ Ngā Tirohanga Rāwaho
New Zealand Qualifications Authority | Mana Tohu Mātauranga o Aotearoa

@
@
@
0800 697 296
[email address]
www.nzqa.govt.nz
125 The Terrace, PO Box 160, Wellington, 6140

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Kia ora Elspeth

 

Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 of 2
December 2025 seeking the following information:

 

Timeframe: This request covers the period 1 January 2018 to the date this
request is received.

 

Format: Where datasets, tables, or modelling outputs are provided, I
request they be supplied in machine-readable format (CSV or original
spreadsheet file), along with any data dictionaries or field definitions.

 

Scope clarification to reduce unnecessary work To streamline this request,
I am not seeking:

-internal email chains

-drafts

-personal information about individuals

unless these are the sole holders of the substantive information
described.

 

If any part of this request is likely to be refused under s 18(f) due to
substantial collation, please identify that part early so I can refine it.

 

Please provide:

 

1. Policy and guidance

Any NZQA guidance, policy, or internal criteria since 2015 that refers to
ADHD in relation to Special Assessment Conditions (SAC).

 

2. SAC data

Any aggregated data (2018–present) on SAC applications approved or
declined where ADHD is cited as the:

-primary reason, or

-a contributing factor.

 

3. Equity and barriers

Any correspondence, briefing material, or analysis discussing:

-barriers to accessing SAC for learners with ADHD -equity concerns
-cultural safety issues -consistency of decision-making across schools

 

If any Māori data governance or Māori equity considerations were applied
when deciding whether to collect, categorise, or monitor ADHD related
information, please provide the relevant documents.

 

4. Categorisation

If no ADHD specific information is held, please confirm how such cases are
categorised within SAC records (for example, whether they are grouped
under broader categories such as “learning difficulty”, “neurodiversity”,
or “other”).

 

If information is not held

If NZQA does not hold some or all of the requested information, please
confirm this and include any:

-documents recording a decision not to collect ADHD specific data
-guidance showing how ADHD related cases are coded or categorised

 

You can expect to receive a response to your request on or before 21
January 2026*. You will be contacted again if there is a likelihood that
this timeframe cannot be met.

 

As you may know requests for official information become official
information once received.  As part of the processing of requests for
official information, NZQA may need to consult with relevant third
parties.  During the consultation, a third party may ask for the identity
of the individual/organisation requesting the information. If you are an
individual making a request, please advise us whether or not you would
have an objection to disclosing your identity if a third party asks for
your identity, and the reasons for your objection.    If you are an
individual making a request on behalf of an organisation please advise us
both whether you personally have an objection to disclosing your identity,
and the reasons for your objection, as well as any objection to
identifying the organisation, together with reasons. NZQA will consider
your reasons and whether they fit with any withholding grounds under the
Privacy Act 2020 or the Official Information Act 1982.

 

Requests from an organisation for information about the organisation will
be processed under Part 4 of the Official Information Act.

 

As part of the commitment to open and transparent government, NZQA is
proactively releasing responses to Official Information Act requests which
are of public interest. We publish OIA responses on a quarterly basis. We
will include advice about the publication of your request in our final
response letter. Your name and contact details will be removed before
publication.

 

In some circumstances after scoping a request, NZQA may decide to charge
for making the requested information available. If this is the case, we
will write to you again with details and seek confirmation you wanted to
proceed on that basis.

 

For any enquiries about your request, please contact
[1][email address].

 

If you are dissatisfied with our response, you have the right, under
section 28(3) of the Official Information Act 1982, to lodge a complaint
with the Office of the Ombudsman at [2]www.ombudsman.parliament.nz. You
can also telephone 0800 802 502 or write to the Ombudsman at PO Box 10152,
Wellington, 6143.

 

Ngā mihi

NZQA Ministerials team

 

*The response date shown takes into account:

Summer holidays (25 December to 15 January)

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