There are a wide range of laws, standards and guidelines that need to be followed when you carry out accredited training and assessing, because you are taking responsibility for bringing your learner up to a 'nationally recognised' level of skill and knowledge, and signing off to say that they are 'competent' to do the job according to an industry-approved standard.

Your responsibilities come from many directions, including workplace health and safety laws, anti-discrimination laws, quality standards set by government regulators, performance standards set by industry bodies and enterprise standards set by the learner's employer.

On top of all that, there is the administrative system your own RTO imposes on you.

So there are lots of things to consider when you design, develop and manage the delivery of a training program.

We'll start with these considerations by taking a step back and looking at the concept of 'competency based training', and thinking about what it is trying to achieve.

Throughout this section there are web links to particular documents or websites that cover specific aspects of the VET system.

For a general overview of the whole system and how it all fits together, you'll find more information on the Australian Skills Quality Authority website.