Staff Appointment, Promotion and Succession Planning

The teaching posts for freezing exclude the post for principal/head teacher, Native-speaking English Teacher, Student Guidance Teacher, Primary School Curriculum Leader, Special Educational Needs Coordinator and Special Educational Needs Support Teacher.

Schools should require the applicants to declare the following in the application forms for the posts and/or other related documents; and to provide details accordingly:
• whether their registered teacher or permitted teacher status has been cancelled/refused;
• whether they have been convicted of any criminal offence in Hong Kong or elsewhere;
• whether they are involved in any ongoing criminal proceedings or investigations (including but not limited to arrest or apprehension by the police) to the best of their knowledge; and
• whether they were/are being investigated by schools or the EDB over professional misconduct allegations to the best of their knowledge.
For appointment of teachers who have already left the teaching profession for one year or more, schools should require the potential appointees to declare whether they have been convicted of any criminal offence in Hong Kong or elsewhere and submitted the details to the EDB.

Starting from the 2023/24 school year, all newly-appointed teachers in public sector schools, Direct Subsidy Scheme schools (DSS schools) and kindergartens/kindergarten-cum-child care centres and schools with kindergarten classes joining the kindergarten education scheme (Scheme-KGs) (including newly-joined teachers and teachers changing schools) are required to pass the BLNST in order to be considered for appointment. The requirement is applicable to newly-appointed regular teachers (remunerated with Salaries Grant), teachers remunerated with cash grant, teachers switching from a teaching post remunerated with cash grant to a teaching post remunerated with Salaries Grant in the same school, monthly-paid temporary teachers (including monthly-paid temporary teachers appointed on non-civil service terms in government schools) in public sector schools, as well as all newly-appointed monthly-paid teachers in DSS schools and Scheme-KGs. The requirement applies to all ranks of the teacher grade (including principals).

The IMC may approve the appointment of a temporary replacement on monthly terms in accordance with the conditions stipulated in the COA under the following circumstances:
• to substitute for teaching staff who have been granted approved leave (e.g. sick leave, maternity leave, study leave, etc.) for a period of not less than 90 days; and
• to fill a teaching vacancy under exceptional circumstances, justifications for which should be properly documented.

If the services provided by outsourced service providers do not involve frequent or regular contact with children or mentally incapacitated persons and their work will be properly monitored, or when institutions employ contract staff through outsourced service provider like short-term repair technicians, deliveryman, guest speakers and guest performers, etc., the Sexual Conviction Record Check Scheme is not applicable to them.

In principals’ CPD, SSBs / SMCs / IMCs play a distinct role in:
(1) drawing up timely principals’ succession plans and nominating candidates to undergo the CFP process (Ref.: Guidelines for Principals’ CPD (Guidelines), Section 5.1.1);
(2) motivating and monitoring principals’ CPD for students’ ultimate benefit (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 6.3);
(3) nominating newly appointed principals to attend the NAP programme (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 3.3);
(4) endorsing CPD plans of newly appointed principals (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 5.2.2);
(5) endorsing the professional portfolio of newly appointed principals (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 5.2.3);
(6) advising serving principals on their CPD plans and rendering them support (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 5.3.2);
(7) advising principals to set a minimum number of CPD hours per year in a three-year cycle (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 4.3);
(8) endorsing principals’ CPD activities (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 3.4.3); and
(9) endorsing serving principals’ CPD records at the end of each year / each three-year cycle (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 5.3.3).
In case of genuine hardship, SSBs / SMCs / IMCs can allow principals failing to meet the CPD requirements in a three-year cycle to make up for the shortfall within the following CPD cycle (Ref.: Guidelines, Section 5.3.4).

To assist newly-joined teachers to understand their professional roles, demonstrate professional values and conduct, and keep abreast of the latest developments in education policies and practices for application in teaching as appropriate, the EDB has developed training programme for newly-joined teachers, which comprises core and elective training. Starting from the 2020/21 school year, full-time teachers appointed to teach in public sector schools (including government, aided and caput schools) or schools under the Direct Subsidy Scheme for the first time are required to complete 30 hours of core training and not less than 60 hours of elective training based on individual professional development needs within the first three years of service.