7. Maintaining HALT Accreditation

This section applies to all NSW teachers who are accredited at Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher (HALT).

7.1. HALT maintenance requirements

To maintain HALT accreditation, teachers must:

• demonstrate that their practice continues to meet the Standards for the relevant accreditation level; and
• complete the applicable professional development (PD) requirements by the end of each maintenance period.

All teachers must also meet the conditions of accreditation in Section 1 to remain accredited.

7.1.1. PD requirements for HALT

Teachers maintaining accreditation at HALT must participate in ongoing PD that relates to the Standards. By the end of each maintenance period, the teacher must:

• complete a minimum of 100 hours¹ of PD² aligned to the Standard(s); and
• retain a PD log that records required information³ for 12 months after the end of their maintenance period.⁴

7.1.2. Finalising maintenance of accreditation

In the final three months of each maintenance period, teachers maintaining HALT accreditation must declare that:

• they have met all maintenance requirements in line with Section 7.1
• they have completed their PD requirements in line with Section 7.1.1; and
• they will retain a record of completed PD for the next 12 months and provide it to NESA if requested.

If a principal/service director becomes aware of issues with a teacher’s HALT practice at any time during the maintenance period, the principal/service director must inform the employer and the teacher within 28 days of becoming aware of such issue. The employer must have internal procedures to address issues relating to a teacher’s practice as and when they arise (see Section 14.6). 

7.2. HALT maintenance verifications

Once the teacher has completed and submitted their declaration, the teacher’s current principal/service director/employer⁵ must⁶:

• review the teacher’s declaration in their NESA online account (eTAMS); and
• verify whether the teacher has continued to maintain their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards.

The principal/service director/employer may:

• determine that the teacher has continued to maintain their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards (see Section 7.2.1); or
• determine that the teacher has not maintained their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards (see Section 7.2.2); or
• record that they are unable to make a verification (see Section 7.2.3).

Where a principal/service director/employer is making a verification for a teacher accredited at HALT who has held their current role for less than three months, the principal/service director/employer, subject to consent from the teacher:

• may contact the teacher’s previous principal/service director/employer about the teacher’s practice;
• must contact the teacher’s previous principal/service director/employer before making a verification that a teacher has not maintained their practice against the applicable higher level of the Standards;
• must contact the teacher’s previous principal/service director/employer before recording that they cannot make a verification about a teacher’s practice.

7.2.1. Verifying that a teacher is maintaining their practice at HALT

If the principal/service director/employer determines that the teacher’s practice continues to meet the Standards at the relevant level of HALT accreditation, the principal/service director/employer:

• must record the verification in their NESA online account (eTAMS) by the end of the teacher’s maintenance period; and
• may provide comments about the teacher’s practice.

7.2.2. Verifying that a teacher is not maintaining their practice at HALT

An employer must have internal procedures to address issues relating to a teacher’s practice as and when they arise (see Section 14.6).

If the principal/service director/employer determines that the teacher has not maintained their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards, the principal/service director/employer must:

• record the verification in their NESA online account (eTAMS) by the end of the teacher’s maintenance period, including the reasons;
• provide comments about the teacher’s practice; and
• provide evidence that the school/service has followed their employer’s internal procedures (in line with Section 14.6).

A principal/service director/employer cannot make a negative verification for a teacher accredited at HALT unless the principal/service director/employer has notified the teacher of the issues with their practice in writing, including:

• the reasons for the principal’s/service director’s/employer’s intended verification, including the Standard Descriptors that the teacher does not meet;
• details of the appropriate and timely support and advice provided to the teacher regarding their practice against the applicable Standards;
• the feedback and support provided to the teacher, which may include intervention strategies or an improvement plan to support the teacher, and the outcome of implementing those strategies/plan/support; and
• the teacher’s right to respond to the written notice within 28 days and address the issues identified.

7.2.3. Unable to make a verification

If a principal/service director/employer is not able to make a verification for a teacher finalising their maintenance at HALT, the principal/service director must:

• record the verification in their NESA online account (eTAMS) by the end of the teacher’s maintenance period; and
• provide the reason(s) why they are unable to make a verification.

A principal/service director/employer may only record that they are unable to make a maintenance verification for a teacher accredited at HALT if:

• the teacher has not worked in their current role for long enough to allow the principal/service director/employer to confidently verify whether the teacher continues to maintain their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards; and/or
• information provided by the teacher’s previous principal/service director/employer (where applicable and subject to consent from the teacher) has not assisted the principal/service director/employer in making a valid and reliable judgement.

7.3. Maintenance of HALT accreditation decisions

Maintenance of HALT accreditation decisions are made by NESA based on the:

• teacher’s declaration; and
• principal’s/service director’s/employer’s verification.

NESA makes the maintenance of accreditation decision within 28 days after the verification from the principal/service director/employer.

NESA may decide that a teacher accredited at HALT:

• meets the requirements for maintenance of accreditation as set out in Section 7.1; or
• does not meet the requirements for maintenance of accreditation as set out in Section 7.1.

If NESA considers making a decision that does not align with the verification, NESA will contact the principal/service director/employer and, if necessary, the teacher, to discuss the verification before making a decision.

7.3.1. Teachers who maintain accreditation at HALT

Where a teacher reaches the end of a maintenance period and NESA decides that they have maintained their accreditation, the teacher will begin a new maintenance period the day after their current period ends.

7.3.2. Teachers who fail to maintain accreditation at HALT

A teacher accredited at HALT will fail to maintain their accreditation if:

• they do not complete the PD requirements by the end of the maintenance period; and/or
• their practice does not continue to meet the applicable higher-level Standards at any point during their maintenance period.

If a principal/service director/employer verifies that the teacher’s ongoing performance is unsatisfactory and/or they have not maintained their practice at the relevant level of HALT Standards, NESA will:

• contact the principal/service director/employer to request further information or documentation if required (see Section 11.5.1); and
• make an accreditation decision within 28 days of the verification.

If NESA finds that the teacher has not maintained their HALT accreditation, NESA will issue 14 days’ written notice⁷ of an intention to suspend the teacher’s higher-level accreditation, in line with Section 11.9. A teacher in this situation may return to accreditation at Proficient Teacher, if they have met the requirements for maintaining Proficient Teacher accreditation, in line with Section 5.

7.4. Timeframes for maintaining accreditation at HALT

A teacher’s first HALT maintenance period starts the day they are accredited at Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher. Their subsequent maintenance period starts the day after their current maintenance due date.

Teachers employed on a full-time basis have five years to complete maintenance requirements.

Teachers employed on a casual or part-time basis have seven years to complete maintenance requirements, in recognition of the nature of their employment⁸.

A teacher who gains accreditation at either Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher will stop maintaining their current accreditation level and begin maintaining their accreditation against the Standard Descriptors for Highly Accomplished or Lead Teacher as applicable.

7.4.1. Applying for an extension of the maintenance period

Teachers who have been limited in their opportunity to meet the requirements for maintenance by the end of their timeframe may apply for an extension in the final six months of their maintenance period, and as soon as possible within the final six months. Teachers must apply in their NESA online account, providing evidence of the grounds for their request. Grounds for an extension to a teacher’s maintenance period may include:

• illness and misadventure;
• carer responsibilities;
• undertaking further study; or
• other applicable professional or individual circumstances.

7.5. Returning to the previous level of accreditation

Highly Accomplished and Lead Teachers may choose to stop maintaining their higher-level accreditation at any time and return to accreditation at Proficient Teacher (or to Highly Accomplished Teacher in the case of Lead Teachers who were previously accredited at Highly Accomplished Teacher).

To return to the previous level of accreditation, teachers must advise NESA in writing.

Where a teacher returns to their previous level of accreditation, their maintenance period end date will not change and the teacher must meet the maintenance of accreditation requirements for the relevant level of accreditation.

_{1. Some PD activity types may have a maximum number of hours that can be included in the required 100 hours. A list of any specified PD activities with a maximum hour limit will be available on the NESA website.}

_{2. Teachers should use the NESA Professional Development Framework, available on the NESA website, to guide the selection of PD activities.}

_{3. A list of the required information that must be recorded on a teacher’s PD log and an optional template is available on the NESA website.}

_{4. In the event of an audit, a teacher must provide their PD log to NESA within 28 days (excluding school holidays), if requested.} 

_{5. Teachers employed on a casual basis should approach a school/service with whom they have an established relationship to seek a maintenance of accreditation attestation.} 

_{6. Where there is no eligible teacher accredited at Proficient who can verify for the teacher maintaining at HALT, or the teaching maintaining HALT is the principal/service director/employer, contact NESA for advice.} 

_{7. The 14-day written notice period includes school holidays and employer shutdown periods.}

_{8. This includes teachers who have been employed on a casual or part-time basis at any point during their current maintenance period. Teachers must provide NESA with evidence of casual or part-time employment to adjust their timeframe.}