Background
All parents/caregivers enrolling students (over 6 years old) in our school are required under the Preference Clause of our Integration Deed and the Private Schools Conditional Integration Act 1975, (the provisions of which are now incorporated into the Education Act 1989), to have established a connection with the “Special Character” of the school.
The term “Special Character” describes what is unique about the education that our school provides:
The School is a Rudolf Steiner Waldorf School in which Rudolf Steiner’s Art of Education is practiced.
Anthroposophy, its concept of the universe, the world and the human being, is the basis of the art of education and of all endeavour in the School. The education with a Special Character includes festival observances and religious education which is Christian in its broadest sense, free of dogma or sectarianism.
Guidelines
Fundamental principle
- The School’s reason for being is to provide a Special Character education to all of its students. The Board, the Trust and the Principal all have a responsibility to maintain and preserve the special character, and the government is required not to jeopardise the Special Character.
- Accordingly, the enrolment of a student at the School must not compromise the School’s ability to continue to provide an education with the Special Character to all students. This is fundamental and everything else in this policy and any procedures must be read subject to that principle.
- The decision on enrolment will therefore include consideration of:
- parents’ /caregivers’ demonstrated commitment to the Special Character,
- in the case of Upper School students, the students’ commitment to the Special Character education
- the Principal’s advice on enrolment of the child.
General
- The School roll will be managed within the maximum roll prescribed in the School’s Integration Deed, currently 380 students.
- Before a child will be considered for enrolment, the parents/caregivers of the child will be required to:
- Attend a Special Character Interview at the school
- Complete the School’s pre-enrolment form
- When there is a space complete the application for enrolment form
- Attend an interview with the prospective class teacher/s and a member of the leadership team
- Applications during a school year for enrolment in that year will be considered on a case-by-case basis if there are places available (and subject to paragraph 2 above).
Preference of enrolment
- Preference of enrolment at the School under the Education Amendment Act 2019 shall be given to children of parents/caregivers who have established a particular or general connection with the Special Character of the School and are committed to it.
- If the Trust (or its representative) is satisfied that the parents/caregivers of a student seeking enrolment have a ‘particular and general connection’ to the special character, it will confirm this with the Principal.
- The Board will only admit a new student to the School if the Trust or its representative has confirmed such a connection in relation to the student’s family and the criteria in the Enrolment Policy are met.
- All children whose parents/caregivers have established a connection with the Special Character of the School (as evidenced through the Trust’s or its representative’s confirmation) are considered for enrolment, irrespective of their special needs or the religious, cultural, racial or financial status of their parents/caregivers.
Order of Priority
Within a group of students who have preference of enrolment, if there are more applicants than places, priority will be given in this order:
- To a student wishing to enrol in Kindergarten
Of the students wishing to enrol in the Kindergarten priority will be given in the following order:
- to a student who is the child of a staff member at Raphael House
- to a student who is the sibling of a current student of the school
- to a student who is the sibling of a past student of the school
- to a student who is the child of a past student of the school
- to a student who has attended either The Cottage or Wellington City (Thorndon) Rudolf Steiner Kindergartens
- to a student who has attended another New Zealand or overseas Steiner kindergarten
- to a student who has attended a Steiner playgroup
- a student who has been educated in a home environment according to Steiner principles
- to a student who has been on the Raphael House waiting list the longest.
- To a student who is a child of a staff member of Raphael House
- To a student from Te Ra wishing to enrol in Class 8
Of the Te Ra students wishing to enrol, once the above criteria have been taken into account, priority will be given in the following order:
- To a student who is the child of a permanent staff member at Te Ra
- To a student from Te Ra with the longest tenure at the School
- To a student who has been on the Raphael House waiting list the longest
- To a student who is currently enrolled at another New Zealand Steiner school
- To a student who is currently enrolled at an overseas Steiner school
- To a student who is the sibling of a current student of the school
- To a student who is the sibling of a past student of the school
- To a student who is the child of a past student of the school
- To a student who has been educated in a home environment according to Steiner principles
- To a student who has been on the Raphael House waiting list the longest.
NOTE: should a student be offered a place and decline, the student will re-join the waiting list from the date declined.
Non-preference students
- If there are more places available at the School than students with preference of enrolment, applications for enrolment may be accepted from non-preference students:
- Up to total maximum of 5% of the School’s maximum roll
- Provided that enrolment would not compromise the School’s ability to continue to provide an education with the Special Character to all students.