New teachers plan on quitting expensive city — survey

cent of her net income in rent.

“I have a huge financial stress by being in Auckland,” she said.

She is looking for a new job in the Waikato or Bay of Plenty and believes she will be able to buy a home there within five years.

Balmoral School principal Malcolm Milner, a union spokesman on the issue, said most beginning teachers at his school were still living with their parents. “How long can that last when you know they want their independence?” he asked.

He urged the Government to divert unspent money tagged for new “communities of learning” to raise teacher salaries or give teachers incentives to stay in Auckland.

“Say if you stay we’ll pay off $5000 of your student loan,” he suggested.

The Government earmarked $9 million last year to tackle the teacher shortage by recruiting new teachers from Britain, attracting expatriate Kiwis to come home, 100 extra trainee teacher scholarships and 30 extra places in the Teach First scheme. It allocated a further $5.2m in this year’s Budget to fund two more intakes for the Teach First scheme and $2m for a mentoring programme for new teachers.

Education Minister Nikki Kaye said the Ministry of Education had started “more intensive monitoring of teacher vacancies in recent months which has confirmed that Auckland schools are facing increasing pressures, particularly within primary teaching”.

“The ministry is continuing to meet with key sector organisations, including the Auckland Primary School Principals Association and the Auckland Secondary School Principals Association,” she said. “The meetings focus on the challenges around recruiting teachers in Auckland schools and the initiatives the ministry has put in place to support schools to recruit quality teachers.”