Overview of purchasing VET
Purchasing VET for school students means making several choices. First, decide which certificate to offer. Next, choose who will deliver it. Then, plan how delivery will be organised. Finally, consider how the school will manage its responsibilities during the program.
Schools are encouraged to think about purchasing VET in 5 steps:
- choose the VET certificate(s) that best meet student needs
- choose an RTO and delivery model
- complete due diligence
- set up the contract and prepare for delivery
- manage delivery, including payments, issues and complaints.
Schools are responsible for:
- choosing VET that is right for their students
- using the correct department standard contract or agreement
- using the Parent/carer consent form (DOCX)(opens in a new window) to collect and share student health information
- conducting a VET readiness check (using the VET readiness check template (DOCX)(opens in a new window) or equivalent) for students if they will attend offsite VET
- checking that delivery is safe and appropriate
- meeting their own obligations under the relevant contract/agreement.
Schools always maintain a role for student wellbeing, communication, attendance oversight, information sharing, and duty of care.
Guidance for schools on how to check that delivery is safe and appropriate is provided in the Completing due diligence chapter.
RTO types delivering VET to school students in Victoria
Registered training organisations (RTOs) delivering VET to school students in Victoria include:
- TAFEs (Technical and Further Education) – these are public providers of VET. They have over 100 campuses across the state. Each campus has specialist infrastructure. They deliver to both adults and school students
- School-based RTOs (SBRTOs) – these are government or non-government schools that are also RTOs. They deliver VET designed for school students. They deliver to their own students and sometimes others.
- Private RTOs – these are private companies. They work with schools to teach VET. They deliver onsite at schools or offsite on the RTOs campuses or an agreed third-party location. They can also enter into auspice agreements with schools.
- Community-based RTOs – These are RTOs that are charity or not-for-profit organisations. They run VET courses and often provide training focused on local community needs.
Delivery models
There are 2 broad categories of delivery arrangements for VET. They are direct RTO delivery and auspice delivery.
- Direct RTO delivery model – this is when the RTO delivers training and assessment using its own trainers and assessors. Delivery may occur across a range of locations.
- Auspice delivery model – this is when the school’s teachers/paraprofessional/trainers deliver the training at the school. This happens under an auspicing agreement with an RTO.
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