For Schools

Ko te ahurei o te tamaiti arahina ō tātou mahi

Let the uniqueness of the child guide our work

This page provides information for school leaders, SENCOs, LSCs, and others involved in the planning and organisation of our Cluster. It also contains guidance on accessing our RTLB service and Learning Support Funding.

There are detailed expectations and responsibilities for RTLB and the different teams and agencies we work in collaboration with, outlined in the Operating Standards and Procedures (OS &Ps) published by the MoE. There is also guidance for other groups within Learning Support, such as Learning Support Coordinators and SENCOs.

The RTLB service works with akonga in years 2-10. Support for Y0-1 is provided by the Ministry of Education Learning Support team, and you can find more information about this here.

There are many different aspects of the mahi RTLB do in schools, kura, and Clusters including:

supporting mokopuna, their teachers and associated support staff with learning and/or behaviour focussed development
managing the allocation of Learning Support Funding (LSF)
supporting positive strategies for Māori students, Pasifika students, and students with disabilities
supporting professional growth and development for teachers, leaders and support staff
contributing to Gateway assessment processes in collaboration with Health sector groups, Oranga Tamariki, and the MoE
conducting bilingual assessments

RTLB Interventions and Support Achieve Change Through:

ensuring effective teaching and practices that respond to individual circumstances and contexts
building knowledge of effective teaching pedagogies and practices
a commitment to inclusive education
a commitment to achievement for all
working alongside other professionals and whānau to provide practical support and advice
adhering to the principles of and following the sequence of RTLB practice detailed in He Pikorua
keeping students' needs and achievement at the centre of any service and all support provided
Working in ways that are culturally sustaining and appropriate

There is more detailed information about the role of RTLB, professional learning available and other information here: https://www.nzrtlb.net.nz.

RTLB Practice Expectations:

focus on positive outcomes for akonga and their whānau
focus on positive outcomes for teachers, leaders and support staff
provide a consistent professional standard of evidence-based practice
follow the intervention sequence described in the professional practice section of the RTLB toolkit

engage in a collaborative, consultative processes
work with MoE Learning Support and other specialist professionals to provide a seamless continuum of flexible services
records include evidence of the impact of RTLB interventions
ensure reporting clearly identifies Māori and Pasifika
follow a robust data gathering, planning and reporting cycle.
meet timeline and other expectations detailed in the OS&Ps

Guidelines

Requesting RTLB Support

To request support, speak with your Liaison RTLB. Complete the application form linked at the bottom of this page or the home page.

RTLB support is intended to provide additional ‘next step’ support for mokopuna who are not making expected progress or are experiencing challenges in learning and/or behaviour. It comes after teachers have implemented targeted and/or tailored supports, and these programmes have not achieved the desired outcomes. RTLB support can be focused on learners from Years 2-10.

Applications for RTLB support should be collaboratively developed with input from class teacher (s), RTLB, whānau, mokopuna, and other important stakeholders.

It is important that applications include:

observation information specific to the issues being targeted
diagnostic data - from testing, observation, feedback
other relevant academic, behavioural and social information
information about any ‘wider context issues’ that are relevant - e.g. number of schools, teacher experience, levels of support, other agencies and funding involved, whānau knowledge
specific information about the strategies already tried that have worked and those that have not
A focus on the strengths of the ākonga and their whānau that can be built upon in any support provided

Below are our new consent forms:

CORTLB_Consent_Form_Group.pdf

Group Consent Form

*CORTLB Individual Consent form.pdf

Individual Consent Form

RTLB Supports

The Liaison RTLB will often support initial observations and data gathering in order to develop an understanding of the current concerns. This information contributes to liaison meetings and any requests for support that are made.

As a result of a collaborative conversation with the school's Learning Support team and the class teacher, the next steps are identified. For example, the following may be seen as beneficial:

Further in-school support
RTLB support for an individual student
RTLB support for a group of students or class
RTLB support for a teacher, group of teachers, or team
RTLB support for whole of school intervention or plan

A focus of RTLB mahi is building the understanding and capability of everyone involved, and particularly the adults.

This video explains Te Tūāpapa - the framework that details the scope of RTLB Practice and support.

RTLB Service Timeline Expectations

The OS&Ps for the RTLB service and other documents set a number of clear timeline expectations:

Requests for support should be submitted within 7 working days of the signing of the consent form by whanau (as this confirms the team is agreed on the need identified and that an RfS is the appropriate response)
Allocation hui are held fortnightly during term time
The CORTLB Leadership team must notify schools of the outcome of RfS applications within 5 days of the Allocation hui. This is most usually done immediately, during the allocation hui
RTLB must make contact within 7 working days of the allocation notifications being sent

A collaborative action plan (CAP) must be developed (and implementation of the plan should be beginning) within 5 weeks of the RfS being allocated.

Learning Support Fund (LSF)

This fund is calculated for each RTLB Cluster using the roll and the equity index of each school in the cluster. It is managed by the RTLB cluster leadership team. It can only be used to support those who are the focus of ‘active’ requests for support. The assistance may include:

teacher release time to meet RTLB or others
specific resources to support RTLB interventions if not available through our resource library or the school
support for additional professional development for teachers or support staff
support for teacher’s aide assistance

Allocation

The allocation of Learning Support Funding:

is linked to need identified by the RTLB data gathering and team planning processes
occurs in the context of a conversation between RTLB and the school team – with an application for LSF coming from that conversation. This will often occur at planning or review hui.
is responsive – with regular referral and allocation meetings
should have clearly identified outcomes and impact expectations

Learning Support funded Interventions

LSF programmes will:

be based on data gathered
be innovative and be mokopuna focussed
prioritise interventions that up-skill teachers and that minimise reliance on Teacher Aides
collaboratively set clear and realistic goals
collect pre and post measures that demonstrate the impact of the intervention

Sustainability

The Collaborative Action Plan should detail:

clear and specific goals which are agreed on by the team
timeline expectations
who is responsible for what
what the impact expectations are
initial thinking for ensuring sustainability of the change and impact

Concerns and Complaints

Should any whānau, teachers or leaders in schools, or others have concerns or wish to make a formal complaint about any aspect of RTLB practice, or individual members of the RTLB team, the following policy and processes on this page from Tahuna Intermediate our Lead School will apply.

Key Documentation for our Cluster Includes

Strategic Plan

This strategic Plan covers the time period from 2026 to 2027. It details the strategic goals, timelines, and impact for each area the team focuses on.

Strategic (and annual) Plan RTLB Cluster 39 - v3Jan 2026.pdf

Annual Reports

Each year, RTLB Cluster provide reports to the MoE detailing the mahi the team has undertaken and its impact over the previous calendar year. These are submitted at the beginning of March.

The MoE provides a very specific template for these reports.

2025 - Annual Report submitted covering the 2025 year.

CORTLB Annual Report - 2025 .pdf

Budget 2026

The annual budget for 2026 .

CORTLB Budget - 2026.pdf

Application Timelines

The calendar to the right shows the deadlines for the submission of referrals and Learning Support applications.

Referral/LSF allocation meetings are held every 2 weeks on the Monday of even weeks each term, and the deadline for submitting applications is the Wednesday of the previous week.

The calendar also shows our whole team’s professional learning or other activities where RTLB will not be available for work in schools.

Add calendar

Cluster Database

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