Funding boost and tough targets as NorthTec faces 2026 viability goal

About 100 gathered at NorthTec's marae on Monday as part of the "Save NorthTec" initiative, which included discussions from stakeholders across business, industry and local government. Photo / Brodie Stone

NorthTec has been granted more than $3 million in funding from the Tertiary Education Commission amid the polytechnic’s ongoing battle to achieve viability.

The funding was announced on Monday at a hui about NorthTec’s future.

Stakeholders gathered to hear the independent Piki Teitei strategic report for NorthTec and a panel of speakers, which included representatives from Ngāti Hine, Te Matarau Education Trust, Te Uri-o-Hau and NorthChamber.

Operations lead Derek Slatter announced the funding for 2026 from the Strategically Important Provision Fund.

The $3m was the highest amount approved for all the polytechnics.

Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds previously issued a directive to NorthTec stating it needed to achieve viability by July 2026.

The goal was to ensure a sustainable future for NorthTec and not set it up to fail, Simmonds said.

Former NorthTec director Hūhana Lyndon called the directive unfair and unrealistic while speaking at Monday’s hui.

She shared information from a separate viability report from 2024 that showed fulltime enrolments had decreased by 40% and there was a strong case for a merger with an established institute.

The report outlined ideas such as selling off property and questioned whether cuts were enough, suggesting there was no clear path towards viability.

Lyndon said there was the possibility of an action group forming to save the institution.

While Lyndon took a concerned view, Slatter was more optimistic.

“There is a pathway to viability,” he said.

The deadline for NorthTec to achieve viability is looming, leaving students and staff on edge. Photo / Brodie Stone

Slatter said more than 1500 students would need to come on board next year to help push NorthTec through.

Staff were working hard to achieve viability but there was still some “tough stuff” to do, he said.

The Piki Teitei report outlined a strategic five-year plan for NorthTec’s future post Te Pūkenga.

The report acknowledged financial pressures and the need for immediate cost-cutting but suggested more clarity around strategic direction and collaboration with community stakeholders such as the Ministry of Social Development, Kaitāia College and Te Hiku Iwi Development Trust.

Ngāti Hine Forestry Trust chairman Pita Tipene told the hui he thought the report was “muddled” and did not set a clear pathway forward.

Tipene suggested Te Tiriti ō Waitangi was not a central thread.

Slatter told the Northern Advocate the intention was and had always been to fulfil Treaty obligations.

“If it didn’t come through clearly in the Piki Teitei report, that’s an accident.”

NorthChamber chief executive Leah McKerrow said at the hui Northland needed housing, health and education to thrive.

NorthChamber chief executive Leah McKerrow said during Monday's hui that education was needed to help Northland thrive. Photo / Denise Piper

“We need to be building skills and capability for the workforce of the future.”

McKerrow said that included local training for youth and relevant and adaptable courses.

Tertiary Education Union Te Uepū representative and NorthTec staff member Sharlene Nelson said hearing from the community was good but questioned whether NorthTec’s senior management was listening.

Nelson had read the Piki Teitei report, saying it was nothing new that NorthTec appeared to be mismanaged.

Slatter said NorthTec would take on board all comments from the hui.

Nelson said ongoing proposals, such as the latest to cut 50 roles and create 27 new roles, had staff and students living in a constant state of limbo.

Slatter said NorthTec was supporting people as much as it could and was aware of the impact on “really good, hardworking, experienced” people.

He said the sector had been slow to turn “good feelings and intentions” into contractual actions, “which means we still offer a programme that we offered 10 years ago, when the world has changed”.

NorthTec’s autonomy would be secured if things were done well, Slatter said.

“Decisions will be made that suit Tai Tokerau, not decisions that are made from other areas.”

Slatter said feedback on Piki Teitei was welcomed as NorthTec worked towards a future that met the needs of learners and the community.

Consultation on the report closes October 31.

Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.