Our Ref: OIA-26-448
22 June 2026
Spencer Jones
[FYI request #34809 email]
Dear Spencer,
Re: Official Information Act request regarding consideration of school trespass notices on review I refer to your email to the Education Review Office dated 29 May 2026 requesting the following
information under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA):
I am seeking information relating to whether, and if so how, the Education Review Office (ERO)
considers school governance, wellbeing, educational participation, or family engagement issues where
a school Board or Principal issues a trespass notice against the parent(s) of an enrolled student.
Requested information. Please provide copies of any:
1. Guidance, internal practice material, evaluation indicators, frameworks, policy documents,
reviewer guidance, aide memoires, manuals, or training material held by ERO relating to:
a. school use of trespass notices involving parents or caregivers of enrolled students;
b. parent exclusion from school grounds;
c. restrictions on parent participation or engagement;
d. family-school relationship breakdowns where they may affect an enrolled child;
e. impacts on student wellbeing, belonging, attendance, educational participation, or
pastoral support arising from parent access restrictions.
2. Any ERO evaluation indicators, review criteria, internal guidance, exemplars, or examples of
good practice relevant to:
a. maintaining student wellbeing and belonging where a parent is excluded from school
grounds;
b. preserving constructive family-school relationships during conflict;
c. communication arrangements where ordinary parent-school access is restricted;
d. Board governance and proportionality considerations where restrictions involving
parents may affect an enrolled child.
3. Any reports, discussion papers, internal briefings, governance papers, internal correspondence,
or other material held by ERO since 1 January 2015 concerning:
a. school trespass notices involving current parents of enrolled students;
Ko te Tamaiti te Pūtake o te Kaupapa
The Child – the Heart of the Matter
b. parent exclusion and educational participation impacts;
c. concerns regarding student wellbeing, attendance, belonging, or family engagement
associated with such restrictions;
d. whether ERO should consider or evaluate these matters as part of school review activity.
4. Any publicly available or releasable material identifying ERO’s position regarding whether
school-parent relationship breakdowns may be relevant to:
a. student educational participation;
b. child wellbeing and belonging;
c. school culture;
d. family and community engagement;
e. effective school governance.
Clarification requested. If no specific records exist, please advise:
5. Whether ERO considers the effects of parent exclusion or trespass decisions on:
a. child belonging;
b. attendance;
c. wellbeing;
d. educational participation;
e. family-school partnership;
f. communication arrangements affecting ordinary school life.
6. Whether ERO regards such matters as potentially relevant to its evaluation of school culture,
governance, student wellbeing, or educational engagement.
7. Whether ERO holds any expectation, evaluative lens, or good practice understanding relating to
how schools should maintain student wellbeing and family engagement where restrictions on
parent access are in place.
Please find our full response below.
As advised in our earlier response of 1 April 2026, in New Zealand, schools are self-governing through
their boards of trustees. While the composition of boards can vary depending on the size and nature of
a school, they typically include parents of current students who have been elected by their school
community. This governance model is intended to support local decision making and community
engagement.
When ERO reviews a school, our focus is on student wellbeing and whether students are receiving a
quality education. Th
e frameworks and methodologies we use for these reviews are publicly available
on ERO’s website. Matters relating to how a board engages with parents and its wider community sit
Ko te Tamaiti te Pūtake o te Kaupapa
The Child – the Heart of the Matter
within the board’s governance responsibilities. ERO’s work on this can be seen in our
School
Improvement Framework and
Board Assurance Statements. Decisions about issuing trespass notices
are a matter for individual schools and the Police. ERO is not involved in issuing such notices, nor do
we review their appropriateness as part of our review process.
For these reasons, ERO does not hold the information you have requested. We have also considered
whether your request should be transferred to another agency under section 14 of the OIA, but we do
not believe that any other agency holds this information at a system wide level. I am therefore refusing
your request under section 18(g)(i) of the OIA.
Please note that it is our policy to proactively release our responses to official information requests
where possible. We do not publish requesters' personal information.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision. Information
about how to make a complaint is available
at http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone
0800 802 602.
Yours sincerely,
Sharon Kelly
Director Schools
Ko te Tamaiti te Pūtake o te Kaupapa
The Child – the Heart of the Matter
