NSW Non-government Schools Not For Profit Guidelines

Part E2: References – Definitions/Glossary

Part E summary

This part outlines other laws and definitions that schools and proprietors should be aware of when considering their obligations under the Guidelines. It lists relevant NSW and Commonwealth legislation, noting that schools should confirm the accuracy and currency of this information with official sources. It also includes definitions for key terms used throughout the Guidelines, such as “asset,” “income,” and “payment,” and clarifies that where definitions differ from legislation, the legal meaning takes precedence. This list is not exhaustive, and schools may need to consider other legal requirements depending on their circumstances.

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E2.1 The Guidelines define further key terms and acronyms

This section contains a glossary of terms and acronyms used in the Guidelines. Where there is any inconsistency between these definitions and those in the Education Act or any other legislation, the statutory definitions prevail.

Term	Definition
Asset	Means an economic resource that may depreciate in value over time (see s.83C(5) of the Education Act).
Education Act	Means the Education Act 1990 (NSW).
Education Regulation	Means the Education Regulation 2017 (NSW).
Income	Means money or other forms of consideration received periodically from the provision of property, goods or services, investments, gifts, donations, grants, financial assistance or any other gain obtained from the use of a school’s assets or its proprietor’s assets (see. s.83C(5) of the Act).
Minister	Means the NSW Minister for Education and Early Learning.
Payment	Means a transaction involving consideration (including non-monetary consideration) and includes a commitment to spend or a liability incurred (whether or not the time for payment has arisen (see s.83C(5) of the Education Act).
Proprietor	Means the legal entity designated, in the school’s certificate of registration, as the proprietor of the school.
School	Means a non-government school (see s.83A of the Education Act).
School governing body	Means anybody or bodies responsible for making decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of a school’s operations. Schools may be required to substantiate that individual persons are or are not members of the school’s governing body or bodies if requested to do so.

Further Information

Schools must know and comply with their funding obligations to the Australian Department of Education and NSW Department of Education:

Non-government Schools Funding (NSW Department of Education)
Funding for schools (Australian Department of Education)

Schools or proprietors may contact NESA about these Guidelines by emailing:

ngs83cenquiries@nesa.nsw.edu.au

Further information is available on NESA’s website at:

www.nsw.gov.au/education-and-training/nesa/not-for-profit-school-regulation

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