Revised Standards - Transition arrangements podcast transcript

Podcast published: 22 April 2025

Kai Rottmann: Hello everyone and welcome to ASQAcast, ASQA’s official podcast and your avenue to being informed about all things ASQA. It’s Kai Rottmann here, and I'm excited to have Sharayne Given join me today to talk about transition arrangements for the revised Standards. Sharayne is the Senior Director for the Quality and Program Support branch that looks after registration, performance assessments, compliance work and more. In this episode we will talk more about what providers need to be aware of leading up to the 1st of July when the revised Standards come into play. So, thanks so much for joining me today, Sharayne.

Sharayne Given: Thanks Kai. It's my pleasure.

Kai Rottmann: Wonderful. Ok, so I've had so many questions from providers in preparation for the revised Standards. Sharayne, my first question for you today is what do we mean when we say transition arrangements for the revised Standards?

Sharayne Given: Thanks Kai. Look, transition is really that period of time before the revised Standards come into effect, which of course is 1 July 2025. That period of time in which we're looking to finish off activities under the current Standards and prepare for the implementation of the revised Standards.

Kai Rottmann: Ok, so with that said, what is ASQA’s broad approach to transition?

Sharayne Given: Thank you. So, we're really looking to prepare ourselves and prepare the sector around this transition period. We are looking to make sure that we have planned and prepared internally with our systems and processes that our staff are ready for implementation of the revised Standards through training and supports and, of course, that the sector is ready for implementation as well, and that's done through a range of tools and supports, engagement, podcasts and those sorts of things. We have also been working very closely on a transition plan. So that provides information on activities that are underway and broad instructions for teams as we get to that date of 1st of July.

Kai Rottmann: Ok excellent, and what are the transition arrangements for providers that have active regulatory activity underway?

Sharayne Given: Yes, there are a number of activities underway at any point in the year. They may be assessments against applications in our Market Entry team. They may be audits under way in relation to renewal of registration and a whole wide range of assessment activities or regulatory activities under way. It is possible…

Kai Rottmann: Ok...

Sharayne Given: Oh, sorry Kai. I was just going to add that it is possible that some activities will span across that cutover date, if you like, of 1 July and if that's the case, the relevant regulatory officer will be in touch if any additional information is needed in relation to that assessment. Thanks Kai.

Kai Rottmann: Excellent. Thanks Sharayne. Sorry for jumping in there. I just had so many questions for you. So, one of our…one of our most popular questions is what happens if my re-registration is due in the second half of 2025?

Sharayne Given: Yes, quite a few 100 providers are due for re-registration. Look, providers are required to submit an application for re-registration. The minimum period for that is greater than 90 days to submit your application for re-registration but we encourage providers to put that in as early as possible, even up to 6 months early. Most providers put it in within that sort of 120 to 90 day period before registration expiry, but we certainly encourage early applications. If your application is received by ASQA, we'll prioritise that in line with your registration date and conduct an assessment. If we are conducting the assessment, it most likely would be against the revised Standards and the relevant regulatory officer will certainly let you know which applies if there is any confusion or if your activity is likely to fall across that cutover period, the sort of before and post 1 July date.

Kai Rottmann: Yeah. Look, that's really great information. Thank you, and I know you are and I'm sure most of the sector are really looking forward to the 1st of July when the revised Standards come into place. Question for you, will ASQA take a hard-line approach when it comes to the revised Standards or will there be a grace period and transition period for providers to update their materials to align with the revised Standards?

Sharayne Given: Yes, a very interesting question and one I'm sure many providers would like to hear from us on. Essentially the 1st of July is the first date of the Standards coming into effect, so we are expecting providers to comply with the revised Standards from that date. Preparations for implementing the revised Standards from a provider's point of view would be having a good awareness of what the Standards are and what providers are required to do as an RTO, making efforts within their systems and processes to comply with the revised Standards, and I would also call out that complying with the Standards is not something that a provider does right before registration renewal. It really should be a continuous thing and done across all of the months and years of the registration period. We’ll continue to support providers in transition and the implementation of the revised Standards, and that of course means providing materials and tools, podcasts like the one we're recording today, and also information for the sector to prepare themselves, Practice Guides, etc. 

We'll continue to provide further opportunities after implementation. So, it's not just what are we doing before 1 July, but actually it's a continuous approach that we’ll continue to provide additional supports and engagement and seek feedback from the sector right through for the many months after 1st of July, and of course providers can reach out to ASQA. We welcome and encourage feedback, but also from those providers that put their hand up and ask for more help, we would like to hear from you and help to support you through that implementation.

Kai Rottmann: Yeah, that's a really key point. Thank you Sharayne and it's great. There's so many providers asking all of these questions that it shows real sector engagement with the revised Standards. So look, thanks so much for your insights today, Sharayne. It's been a pleasure having you on for ASQAcast. Do you have any final advice for the sector?

Sharayne Given: Thank you. Oh look, it's my pleasure to be with you today. I suppose I'd just reiterate that last point that this is an ongoing journey. It's not full steam ahead and then stop everything for the 1st of July because we're ready and implemented. We're really looking for the Standards to be an opportunity for providers to reflect on their approach and opportunities for continuous improvement in and amongst their systems and processes and broader delivery as a training organisation, and ASQA internally is undergoing the same process. We're looking for opportunities amongst implementation to make things clearer, more transparent, more efficient in the way we do our business as well. So, we are definitely looking for improvements in the way we conduct assessments and providers can certainly look forward to seeing those benefits in the coming weeks and months.

Kai Rottmann: Wonderful. Thank you so much again, Sharayne. It's been a real pleasure having you on board today. So that wraps it up for another episode on ASQAcast today. Stay tuned for our next episodes as we continue to highlight key topics for consideration. You can find our podcasts on our website by heading to asqa.gov.au and searching podcasts. If you have any topics of interest like revised Standards that you would like to hear more about, please send us an e-mail at podcasts@asqa.gov.au. We look forward to you joining us next time on ASQAcast. Bye for now.