Future of vocational education for the Service sector

Executive Summary of Ringa Hora submission

Like the Government, Ringa Hora shares a desire to see a VET system that “provides skills, knowledge and career pathways for learners into industries and professions that are vital to the economic prosperity of New Zealand”.

Our perspectives on the overall reforms are:

• Business growth requires a whole-of-economy approach to vocational education and training. Given that significant future economic growth will come from industries that currently participate less in credentialised learning, we consider that investment and coverage for all industries should be maintained.
• Thriving Māori and Pacific economies are critical for NZ and the VET system will need to meet the needs of Māori and Pacific populations that are growing at a significantly faster rate (14.4% and 16.0% growth respectively since 2018) than the general population.
• Independent standard-setting organisations can be an effective conduit between industry, government and the VET system. While standard setting is the core of Ringa Hora’s work, there is much more value that can be generated by leveraging the relationships, expertise and industry insights gained through standard setting to better inform government policy and vice versa.
• Without a compelling vision for industry training, it is difficult to justify large-scale, disruptive reform. The effort and costs involved to instigate a large scale legislative and structural reform programme should only be undertaken if there is a strong case that it will improve outcomes for industry and improve workplace training for learners. This is not evident from the proposals, instead there is a real chance that the disruption from further reforms will cause more employers (and learners) to lose confidence in the system, deepening the decline in VET we have seen over the past years.

Based on our considerations of the proposals, Ringa Hora prefers Option B for Proposal 2, as it creates a level playing field for providers with more choice for learners and employers, and delivers the Government’s objectives more efficiently. However, we propose a number of enhancements to ensure option B can deliver better value for money, move more quickly, and align with wider Government priorities:

• Reform Workforce Development Councils within the current legislative framework through revising their Orders in Council, to streamline governance and deliver efficiencies
• Allow the new standards-setting organisations to cost-recover and be partially self-funded
• Consider efficiencies in the relationships between the new standards-setting organisations, TEC, NZQA and providers
• Align the new standard-setting organisations with Australian ‘Jobs and Skills Councils’

On Proposal 1, we recommend giving Te Pūkenga the chance to stabilise before implementing further changes that could disrupt learners, employers, and staff. If disestablishment proceeds, Ringa Hora suggests establishing a small number of regionally based ITPs, strategically combining financially viable and non-viable institutions to ensure regional coverage and financial sustainability.

On Proposal 3, we believe the VET system needs to be supported by a transparent and equitable funding system, tailored to the needs of learners and employers, rather than the needs of ITPs and providers. We advise that WDCs are closely involved in any future work to determine how to support the ongoing funding of standard setting functions into the new entities, and how funding for workplace learning will be calculated and allocated.

What happens after 12 September?

After the consultation period closes, the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) and MOE will analyse all feedback. In November, MOE will present feedback and recommendations to Cabinet, which will then make its decision before the end of this year.