Over the last few years many changes have taken place in relation to the regulation and management of the VET sector. One major change was the creation of a national regulator called ASQA. This body was brought into being with the passing of a new law, the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (NVR) Act 2011.

Another unfolding development has been the make-up of the national body that oversees VET policy and the endorsement of Training Packages.

Since 2011, this role has been performed by the National Quality Council (NQC), the National Skills Standards Council (NSSC), the Industry and Skills Council Advisory Committee (ISCAC), and as of May 2015, the Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC).

Below are the main agencies and standards that RTOs need to be aware of and maintain compliance with in their operations.

ASQA

The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) is the national VET regulator. Its primary role is to implement the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015, which sets out the performance standards and compliance requirements for all RTOs that come under its jurisdiction.

Most states and territories have now closed their separate regulatory authorities and transferred their functions to ASQA. However, Western Australia and Victoria have decided at this stage to remain outside the national system. This means that RTOs based in those states that don't operate outside state borders will continue to be regulated by their local authority.

The result is that there are currently two sets of standards in operation to regulate RTOs, depending on the authority that applies to them. ASQA-regulated RTOs need to comply with the new national Standards. State-regulated RTOs, on the other hand, are continuing with the system that was in operation before the national Standards were introduced -the AQTF 2010.

For more details on ASQA and its regulatory functions, go to the Australian Skills Quality Authority website.

AQTF 2010

The Australian Quality Training Framework (AQTF) 2010 still applies to RTOs administered by state-based regulators, unless they operate across more than one state or deliver training to international students. In these cases, the RTO falls under the jurisdiction of ASQA regardless of which state it is based in.

Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015

RTOs regulated by ASQA must comply with the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015. In practice, the Standards are very similar to the AQTF 2010. They both have the same objectives of setting down minimum benchmarks for acceptable performance and processes for dealing with quality issues and learner needs.

The ASQA website contains a User's Guide to the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015.

There is also a link on this page to the Act itself.

AVETMISS compliance

AVETMISS stands for Australian Vocational Education Training Management Information Statistical Standard. This is a national database that collects information on students being trained under the VET system, including:

• Who they are - such as their age, sex, ethnic background, home address and any disabilities they may have
  
  
• Where they study - including the location of the training delivery and whether the provider is a government, enterprise-based or private RTO
  
  
• What they study - including the units they are enrolled in, the results they obtain, the mode of delivery and how the training was funded.

All RTOs are required to maintain 'AVETMISS compliant' training records, so that they can send in the necessary information to the government regulator at the specified times.

Are you involved in reporting training activities via the AVETMISS system?

Explain the purpose of the 'Learner Engagement' and 'Employer Satisfaction' quality indicators.

Describe the process you use to collect the data for these two quality indicators using the Learner Questionnaire and Employer Questionnaire.