Conduct. Competence. Complaint. Performance. Can your leaders tell the difference?
Most employment matters in schools are resolvable at the lowest level. They escalate because the leader closest to the problem does not know the process, so they avoid it, or charge at it and get it wrong. Either way, it lands on your desk. This session fixes that.
The 3 C's and a P of Employment · Delivered by Isabel Dixon, TuuTika
Middle leaders are promoted for their teaching, then handed the hardest part of leadership.
Managing adults. Nobody trains them for it. So the missed meetings, the markbook that never gets updated, the colleague who makes others feel small: they get noticed, and nothing gets said. Six months later there is a union advocate in the room and a process that should have been a ten minute koorero.
Your next personal grievance is sitting in a conversation one of your HOFs is avoiding right now.
The 3 C's and a P of Employment
Two hours, on site, whole leadership team in the room. Built on the Employment Relations Act 2000, the collective agreements, and thirty years of employment relations practice in schools. By the end, your leaders can identify what they are actually dealing with, and follow the process that keeps everyone safe.
Conduct
Did not do it and should have, or did it and should not have. What counts as evidence, what never does, and where misconduct becomes serious.
Competence
When practice falls below the standard. Personal guidance, the competency stages, and protecting the mana and dignity of the teacher throughout.
Complaint
Statements, incident reports, and written concerns. What you can rely on, what you cannot unhear, and when to do a risk assessment.
Performance
Expectations, early conversations, and the low level tools, letters of instruction and expectation, that resolve most matters before they become matters.
Confident people leaders who resolve matters early and correctly.
- The process to follow for each of the four issue types, and why following it protects them personally
- How to have that early koorero, kanohi ki te kanohi, so small issues stay small
- A clear map of what sits within their delegation and what must come to you
- The good faith and natural justice obligations in plain language
- The do's and don'ts of a well run meeting, from notice through to genuine consideration
- Less of your time, and your board's time, spent on matters that never needed to reach you
One flat fee per school. Bring everyone who leads people.
No per head charge. All prices exclude GST. Travel charged beyond 40km of Auckland Central.
School Visit
- Whole SLT and middle leadership team
- Tailored to your school's context
- Closed room: raise real situations safely
- Template pack: letters, meeting checklist, delegations one-pager
Two-Session Pathway
- Session one: the 3 C's and a P framework
- Session two: work a live scenario end to end
- Draft the letter, run the meeting, decide the outcome
- Bring your own anonymised situations
- Embeds practice, not just awareness
Kaahui Ako / Cluster
- Split between schools: from $450 per school
- Single invoice to the lead school
- Capped at 35 participants
- School-specific matters? Book a private visit
Isabel Dixon
Ngaati Hauaa, Waikato, Ngati Hine, Ngati Whakaue. Senior employment relations and governance specialist advising schools, kura, early learning services, boards, and trusts across Aotearoa.
- 30+ years across employment, governance, and operational leadership
- Admitted to the High Court of New Zealand, 2024 (non-practising)
- This is the same framework Issy uses when she is called in after things have gone wrong. She would rather teach it to your team before they do.
Read the thinking behind the framework on the Insights page.
Choose a date. No phone tag required.
Pick your session type and a date that suits your term calendar. You will get instant confirmation, a calendar invite, and an invoice to your school office. If you need to talk first, there is a 15 minute call option in the booker.
Appointment types: School Visit (2 hrs) · Two-Session Pathway (books session one) · Cluster Session (2 hrs) · Free 15 minute enquiry call.
Intake form collects: school name, roll size, number of attendees, venue address, billing contact, anything you would like the session to focus on. ]