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Last updated
29 October 2026

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Standard 2.3

VET students have access to support services, trainers and assessors and other staff to support their progress throughout the training product.

Performance indicators

An NVR registered training organisation demonstrates:

  1. how it determines the training support services to be provided to each VET student and how it makes these training support services available to each VET student;
  2. VET students have access to trainers and assessors and other staff who are responsible for supporting the VET student;
  3. VET students are informed by the organisation about how and when they can access trainers and assessors and other staff; and
  4. queries from VET students are responded to in a timely manner. 

  • You can demonstrate how training support services are made available to students on enrolment and as they progress through the training product, including:
    • resources, including readings, exercises and practice tests
    • language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) support
    • assistive technology
    • tutorials, including online tutorial support
    • individualised support from trainers and assessors
    • specialised IT / technical support (including support for artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled tools).
  • You can show how support is provided to students who are at risk (or potentially at risk) of not making adequate progress with their training – for example, systems for monitoring students’ progress and offering of additional support services or reasonable adjustments.
  • You provide students with reasonable access to trainers, assessors and other staff (for example, administrative or IT support). This might be through providing contact points such as emails and phone numbers along with office hours and preferred contact times and methods.
  • You can demonstrate how you ensure you have educational support services available to your students consistent with their course of study, and how you help students locate relevant information and resources. 

  • Not conducting pre-enrolment checks to understand individual student needs and the training support services the student might access to help them successfully complete the relevant training product.
  • Not regularly reviewing the training support services, including those that are being provided by third parties, to ensure they are appropriate and meet the standard expected.
  • Failing to inform students how they can contact trainers and assessors, or other relevant staff.
  • Failing to allow sufficient student support hours in trainer and assessor schedules.
  • Relying too heavily on AI-enabled supports/automations without providing sufficient access to human staff.
  • Not informing students of the options available to lodge an enquiry and how long they can expect to wait for a response. 

Standard 2.4

Reasonable adjustments are made to support VET students with disability to access and participate in training and assessment on an equal basis.

Performance Indicators

An NVR registered training organisation demonstrates:

  1. VET students are supported to disclose their disability if the VET student wishes to do so;
  2. reasonable adjustments are made for VET students with disability where appropriate; and
  3. where reasonable adjustments are not appropriate or possible, the reasons why are communicated to the VET student as soon as reasonably practicable. 

  • You can show how you make students aware that they have the option to disclose information about a disability and that collection of this personal information will be used to inform reasonable adjustments and handled in line with privacy obligations.
  • You can demonstrate what reasonable adjustments you make to support students with disability, consistent with Part 3 of the Disability Standards for Education 2005, for example:
    • ensuring that course activities and scheduling are sufficiently flexible
    • providing additional time to complete assessments or the opportunity to submit a draft for feedback
    • providing assistive technology options
    • providing alternative formats for learning materials
    • customising resources, activities or presentation mediums
    • offering choice in assessment format where appropriate
    • making physical changes to the learning environment where possible (e.g. accessible room layout).
  • You have systems in place to engage with individual students, their trainers and assessors to implement and regularly review reasonable adjustments.
  • Where reasonable adjustments would not allow a student to meet the requirements of the training product, you demonstrate that you have documented the reasons why and communicated this to the student as soon as reasonably practicable (which will include prior to enrolment in some instances).
  • You can demonstrate that where AI tools are used to enhance accessibility (for example, text-to-speech, speech-to-text, real-time translation, or adaptive learning platforms), these tools are tested for accuracy and reliability before use.
  • You can show that any AI-enabled systems handling personal information have safeguards in place to protect confidentiality and comply with data security requirements. 

  • Failing to provide students with channels to disclose a disability prior to enrolment or throughout their student journey.
  • Not providing an environment where students feel comfortable to declare a disability or request a reasonable adjustment.
  • Not adequately considering (prior to enrolment) the extent to which reasonable adjustments can be made without jeopardising the integrity of the training product or industry standard.
  • Failing to ensure that AI-based training or assessment platforms can accommodate assistive technologies or reasonable adjustments.

Self-assurance questions

  1. How do your RTO staff, or any third parties, identify student needs and monitor their progress to determine the training support services to be provided to each student?
  2. How do you ensure students have access to training support services, and how do you ensure ‘timely responses’ to queries and monitor your performance against these benchmarks?
  3. How do you ensure that students can access trainers, assessors, and other staff, and that AI tools do not replace human support?
  4. How do you ensure students understand when AI-enabled support tools are being used and how they can access human assistance where needed.  
  5. How do you encourage and support students to disclose the impact of their disability on their training experience?
  6. How do you engage with students (and others, as appropriate) to collaboratively identify and agree on reasonable adjustments that can be made?

Case study

Supporting students to progress through training

Maria enrols in a CHC33021 Certificate III in Individual Support qualification. Prior to enrolment, her chosen provider gave clear advice about available training and support services, including academic assistance, language, literacy and numeracy (LLN) support, and access to digital literacy tools. Maria was told how to access these services and was assured that they would be available throughout her learning journey.  

Early in her course, Maria experiences challenges balancing study with caring responsibilities. Maria's trainer identifies reduced engagement through the learning management system and contacts her to discuss her progress. Once the trainer identifies the challenges Maria faces, tailored support is offered, including adjusted deadlines, additional one-on-one time with the trainer, and study-skills coaching. The provider documents all support actions taken and regularly checks in with Maria to ensure attendance, participation and assessment outcomes are maintained, and that supports remain effective.  

Through early identification of barriers, tailored intervention and ongoing monitoring, Maria can successfully complete the course within an extended but appropriate timeframe.  

 

Reasonable adjustment in CPR

TTT Training Pty Ltd (TTT) offers HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as one of the first aid courses it delivers to businesses and corporations around the country. At a recent round of training for employees engaging in a Workplace Health and Safety program, a student with her leg in a cast asked the trainer and assessor if the manikin could be placed on a table instead of the ground for her practical assessment.  The trainer and assessor explained that this did not meet the performance evidence of the unit which requires students to perform at least two minutes of uninterrupted single rescuer cardiopulmonary resuscitation on an adult resuscitation manikin placed on the floor.  

The student read the Assessment Requirements that the trainer and assessor showed her in the unit of competency. The student said that she understood this, and as a relatively young and fit person this would normally not be a problem. She argued the leg cast was a temporary issue, so surely, she could do the training and assessment on a table knowing she could do it on the ground once the cast was removed. The trainer and assessor was clear – unless the student could demonstrate the skill as outlined in the unit, she would not be able to find the student competent, and therefore they should arrange to postpone her training and assessment until after the leg cast was removed.  

Even though the student’s circumstances were temporary, the requested adjustment would have altered a core assessment condition and therefore could not be permitted. Reasonable adjustment must not compromise the validity of the assessment or the integrity of the unit requirements.  

  1. How do providers accommodate the needs of students with disabilities if the training product has physical requirements?

    Providers are required to demonstrate that they create an accessible learning environment for a student with disability, including making reasonable adjustments to support their participation in VET. Where the training product includes requirements that cannot be accommodated with reasonable adjustments, providers should clearly communicate this to the prospective student and suggest alternative training options or pathways prior to enrolment.

  2. How should RTOs apply reasonable adjustment for students undertaking HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation who cannot place an adult manikin on the floor due to disability, while still meeting the unit's performance evidence requirements?

    Reasonable adjustment may support a student's participation in training and assessment, but it cannot remove, replace or alter a mandatory performance evidence requirement. Where the performance evidence for HLTAID009 Provide cardiopulmonary resuscitation requires a student to perform at least two minutes of uninterrupted CPR on an adult manikin placed on the floor, competency must be assessed against that requirement. Providers may implement adjustments such as additional learning support, modified resources or assistive technology, provided these do not affect the competency being assessed. The focus should be on whether the student can demonstrate all mandatory requirements of the unit. Where an adjustment would alter or remove a required outcome, competency cannot be validly assessed against the training product.

  3. For students with non-visible disabilities, can RTOs request supporting evidence when considering reasonable adjustments?

    Providers may request supporting information where it is reasonably necessary to understand a student's support needs and determine appropriate adjustments. Requests should be limited to information relevant to the student's participation in training and assessment, balancing student privacy with the need to make informed decisions that support equitable access and maintain the integrity of assessment outcomes.

    The level of evidence should be proportionate to the circumstances. In some cases, student disclosure may be sufficient. Where further information is needed, brief documentation from a suitably qualified professional may assist in identifying appropriate adjustments. The focus should be on the functional impact of the disability and the adjustments required, rather than the diagnosis itself.