Your Rights

When schools can make rules

Every school in New Zealand has rules about lots of things, from students wearing the correct uniform to not fighting at school.

This section has information about the rules that public schools can make.

Can schools make rules?

Yes, schools have the power under the Education and Training Act 2020 to make rules (also called by-laws) about the control and management of the school. The purpose of these rules is to help the school’s principal and board to run the school well. The board can make rules about most things, as long as:

1. It is within their power to make a certain rule; and
2. there is no law saying that they cannot make that rule (for example, a board could not make a rule saying the school’s teachers can hit students as a punishment, because another law says that it is illegal for teachers to hit students).

Before boards make school rules, they need to speak to their students (as appropriate), their staff, and the school community. Boards decide when it is appropriate to speak to their students about making a school rule.

When does a school have powers to make rules about what I do?

Schools only have the power to make rules about school-related things. However, there are no laws that say exactly where personal things end and school things begin. This is even harder to know with the increased use of technology by students. Incidents are more likely to be school-related if they happen:

• on school grounds;
• within school hours;
• on a school trip/camp;
• while a student is representing the school;
• while a student is in school uniform;
• during a school day;
• in a place that is visible from the school; or
• if they involve several students from a school.

The more of these factors that are present in a situation, the more likely it is that the school will think it is reasonable for them to discipline the student(s) involved.

When might a school not have power to make rules or discipline a student for something?

If a student is away from school, and nothing they are doing is related to school or anyone at school in any way, the school might not have the power to make rules or discipline the student. The more distant a situation is from a school, the more likely it is that the school will not be able to discipline students involved in the situation.

It is possible that things a student does online, in their own time, could become issues that the school disciplines them for (for example, if a student cyberbullies other students from their school). However, the law is not clear about this, and it will have to be decided whether a school can discipline students based on each situation.