The Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Learners) Code of Practice 2021- usually called 'the Code of Practice' or 'the Code' – protects the safety and wellbeing of tertiary and international learners in New Zealand.
The Code contains detailed requirements relating to all aspects of student life and studies in New Zealand, including the information students receive before and after they enrol, and how students are guided and supported while they are studying.
As a signatory to the Code, WIE must follow all of its requirements, carry out a review of its Code compliance every year, and take action if improvements are needed.
In 2024, we wanted to ensure that all our staff and students understand the roles they play in upholding our learner safety and wellbeing system. We are happy to report that our annual review shows:
• We had no critical incidents
• We received no complaints
• Moved to a new location to better our facilitates for staff and students
• Ensuring our information provided around the school is up to date including contact details to access important healthcare and student support.
We define a critical incident as an unplanned or unforeseen traumatic event affecting a learner or learners which has an impact on WIE, its staff, its learners and/or the wider community. This includes the death of a learner.
We define a complaint as an issue or incident raised with the General Manager which cannot be resolved to a learner's satisfaction by our Academic or student support team, OR an issue or incident raised with NZQA or Study Complaints because we are unable to resolve it to a learner's satisfaction internally.
Our annual review also highlighted several improvements that we can make to better ensure the wellbeing of learners:
• Gather further evidence to learner wellbeing and safety strategic goals and strategic plans to make sure it is effective.
• Having more resources for the classroom environment relating to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
• Engaging with Māori and involving Māori in the design of physical and digital environments where appropriate.
For enquiries about our annual review of the Code, please contact us at info@wie.nz.
What does the Code of Practice require?
The Code sets standards for education providers to ensure that:
• providers have strategic goals and plans related to student wellbeing
• providers have responsive wellbeing and safety systems and practices, including for homestay accommodation
• students’ voices are heard and their concerns and complaints are addressed
• the particular wellbeing and safety needs of international students are recognised
• the recruitment of international students is undertaken in an ethical and responsible manner
• information supplied to international students is comprehensive, accurate, and up-to-date
• international students are provided with appropriate orientations, information and advice
• contractual dealings with international students are conducted in an ethical and responsible manner
Where Can I get a copy of the Code of Practice?
A copy of the Code can be downloaded from the NZQA website.
