Hello and welcome to VET News,
This week I want to draw attention to a useful set of resources released through the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations website to support VET students with disability.
These resources are worth taking the time to look at. Supporting students with disability is an area where many RTOs are genuinely trying to do the right thing, but often need more practical guidance. It is one thing to have an access and equity policy. It is another thing to have clear, consistent and well understood practices across pre-enrolment, enrolment, participation, reasonable adjustments, training, assessment, progress and completion.
The new resources include an introductory guide, practice guides, practice illustrations, templates and supporting resources. They are designed to help RTOs build capability and confidence in inclusive practice. This includes designing accessible training and assessment, consulting with students about their needs, documenting and monitoring reasonable adjustments, and continuously improving practice.
I think these resources are valuable because they bring the discussion back to practical implementation. Inclusive practice is not achieved by ticking a checklist. It requires intentional design, informed staff, clear documentation and evidence that the RTO is responding properly to the needs of students. This is also consistent with the broader direction of the revised Standards, which place much greater emphasis on how RTOs support students, assure quality and demonstrate that their systems are working.
This brings me to another issue that I think many RTOs need to be thinking about carefully, which is renewal of registration.
A lot of RTOs approach renewal with a reasonable level of confidence. They have been operating for years, they have systems in place, and they may have been through previous regulatory processes without major issues. That experience is useful, but it is not the same as being ready for renewal under the revised Standards.
Renewal of registration is not really a test of how long the RTO has been operating. It is a test of whether the RTO’s current systems and current practices align with current regulatory expectations. That includes governance, training quality, assessment, student support, self-assurance, continuous improvement and the ability to produce evidence that shows how these arrangements are working.
My advice is that RTOs should start preparing early. Six months before the registration expiry date is a sensible timeframe. Twelve months is even better, particularly if the RTO needs time to strengthen assessment, governance, training quality or policy implementation. Waiting until the renewal application is due, or until the regulator requests evidence, leaves much less room to review documents, identify risks and make practical improvements.
This is also where RTOs need to be clear about the difference between a full audit and targeted renewal preparation. A full audit can be very useful, particularly where there is enough time to complete the audit and use the findings to plan improvement. But where renewal is already approaching, the more practical need may be targeted support with the application, likely evidence requirements, meeting preparation and risk areas that should be addressed before the process becomes urgent.
I have written a new article on this topic called Preparing for renewal of registration: why timing and support matter. The article explains why timing matters, why renewal preparation is not always the same as conducting a full compliance audit, and why RTOs should not wait until the regulator is already asking for evidence before they start looking closely at their current arrangements.
You can read the article here: Renewal of registration: Why targeted support matters
If your renewal of registration is approaching, now is a good time to check the renewal date, work back from the application deadline, and ask a very practical question: if the regulator contacted me tomorrow, what evidence would I rely on? If the answer is not clear, it is better to know that now.
Good training,
Joe Newbery
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