Annual Declaration on Compliance - Episode 1 transcript

Podcast published: 11 February 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 thrilled to have Paige O’Riley join me today to talk about the Annual Declaration on Compliance or as we refer to it as, ADC. Paige has been at ASQA for almost 6 years and is in the Regulatory Policy and Standards team where she oversees the ADC. In this episode, we will hear more about the ADC and what providers should be doing to prepare. So thanks for joining me today, Paige.

Paige O’Riley: It’s great to be here Kai.

Kai Rottmann: Wonderful. So first up, what is the ADC?

Paige O’Riley: The ADC is a declaration that providers must complete and submit annually. The declaration confirms a couple of things. Firstly, that your organisation currently meets the requirements of the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (otherwise known as the Standards). Secondly, that you've met the requirements of the Standards for all AQF certificates issued in the past 12 months and lastly, that you have strategies and practices in place that ensure all students will be trained and assessed in accordance with the Standards.

Kai Rottmann: Ok, so you mentioned this is an annual obligation. When are providers required to complete and submit their ADC?

Paige O’Riley: This year’s ADC will open on the 3rd March and will run until 31 March. But it’s best for providers to complete and submit their ADC as soon as they can. That way, providers will have sufficient time to review and complete the declaration, and it also means providers won’t be receiving as many reminder emails from us. And speaking of emails, whenever we need to contact providers, we use the details listed on asqanet. This is a good reminder as to why providers must always have these details up to date. If a provider’s details are not current, this means they won't get access to the ADC when everyone else does and they’ll have less time to complete and submit.

Kai Rottmann: Ok. So you mentioned that providers should allow sufficient time to complete and submit the declaration. Can providers prepare before the 3rd of March?

Paige O’Riley: Yeah, definitely Kai. I touched on this a bit before, but the declaration requires providers to confirm compliance against the relevant legislation and regulatory requirements. So, using information they’ve already gathered from their continuous improvement and self-assurance practices will support providers to complete the declaration. Providers can use the data and information that they’ve gathered from their own systems that systematically monitor and evaluate their strategies and practices. They can also use our self-assessment tool for preparation, which can be found on our website. 

Kai Rottmann: Has anything changed this year with the ADC?

Paige O’Riley: Yeah, if a provider has completed an ADC in previous years, they would generally know the structure of the online declaration. However, this year there will be a shift in the type of questions asked. Providers will be asked to declare compliance against specific provider obligations upfront. There will be an opportunity to provide information about the non-compliances at the end of the declaration. There is also a greater focus on continuous improvement and managing risks to quality. As we have revised the structure of the ADC, we recommend that providers read the questions carefully to ensure all responses are accurate and complete.

Kai Rottmann: Thanks Paige. So I just want to explore this a little bit further if I may. I think a lot of providers when completing the declaration may think, why would I declare non-compliance? So Paige, what would you say to providers who are hesitant to declare that they’re not compliant even if that may be the case?

Paige O’Riley: Yeah, good point Kai. I recently attended a conference where an employee of a provider asked me what they should do if management were not wanting to declare non-compliances in the ADC. They advised they wanted to do the right thing and were uncomfortable helping if management were not going to provide accurate and complete responses in the ADC. So, I guess my answer is what I told them at the conference. 

The ADC is not an exercise for us to catch providers out on bad behaviour, and it isn’t just a tick and flick exercise. It really is designed to help providers improve their governance and self-assurance so that they can continuously improve.

It may be worse if a provider declares they’re compliant when they’re not, as opposed to just being upfront about the non-compliance. Not only do we validate the information the provider submits in their ADC with both internal and external databases, but any regulatory activities conducted shortly after will confirm if the information they’ve provided in the ADC is accurate. So if the ADC is squeaky clean, declaring compliance and we find otherwise, the provider may open themselves up to more regulatory scrutiny because they have been dishonest. 

Kai Rottmann: Ok, that’s great. So what should providers do if they’ve found non-compliances?

Paige O’Riley: If a provider has found non-compliances, they must disclose this in the declaration. However, they will be asked additional information about how they have addressed the non-compliance and the actions that they’ve taken to return to compliance. Including this information as part of the ADC submission demonstrates their commitment and capability to delivering quality VET. 

Kai Rottmann: Ok, so honesty is the best policy here. Good key message. Now, are all providers required to complete the ADC?

Paige O’Riley: There are some exemptions. This year, there are 3,479 providers that are required to complete and submit the ADC, and these are the providers registered with ASQA before 1st of January 2025. If a provider’s registration is managed by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (or QCAA as we call them), then they’re not included. QCAA have a separate submission process and these providers should contact them directly. 

Kai Rottman: Ok wow, that’s a lot of submissions in a four-week period. What happens if a provider doesn’t complete in time?

Paige O’Riley: Good question. All providers must complete on or before 31 March. This is a requirement of their conditions of registration under the National VET Regulator Act. Failure to complete and submit by 31 March is a failure to meet the conditions of their registration and we may conduct further regulatory activities if you do not comply.

In 2024, just so you know, 92 providers did not complete and submit within the submission period. These providers were issued a written direction notice, and out of those, 36 underwent compliance monitoring activities, which as we know incurs fees and charges. 

Kai Rottmann: Ok, so that can turn out to be quite costly. So, can you explain the submission process a little bit more? How do providers complete the declaration and can they edit their submission once they have submitted?

Paige O’Riley: Yeah, CEOs will receive an email on 3rd March with their unique weblink to the online declaration. The declaration needs to be completed by the person legally responsible for the registration of the provider so, that’s why it goes to the CEO. While more than one person in the organisation may contribute to the ADC, the final declaration does need to be completed by the CEO. 

When they receive their unique weblink, there will be instructions on how they need to complete and submit the ADC. But basically, the online declaration can be saved and updated any time until submission. Once the declaration has been submitted, they cannot re-enter to change answers, and they can only declare once. After submission, providers can print, save to PDF and also email a copy of the answers to themselves. But once they leave the page, they’ll no longer have access to this. If providers are unsure if they've submitted correctly, they can always return to the original email from us, click on the unique weblink and a message will appear confirming submission. 

Kai Rottmann: Ok so I’m really curious as to once they’ve submitted, what happens next? What do we actually do with the data and why is the ADC important?

Paige O’Riley: We use the ADC data for a number of reasons Kai. Firstly, along with our other data sources, ADC data helps us to determine providers’ commitment and capability to delivering quality VET. It also helps us identify where there are gaps in knowledge in the sector and where non-compliances are most likely to occur. We also use the data when conducting regulatory activities. So, as I touched on earlier, if a provider has declared compliance with all legislative and regulatory requirements, and non-compliances are found during a regulatory activity, then the provider will be questioned as to why the non-compliance had not been identified.

Kai Rottmann: Ok, thanks Paige. We’ve covered quite a bit today. So, my last question for you, what are your 3 key messages to providers that they should take away?

Paige O’Riley: Great question. Firstly, reviewing your operations should be an ongoing practice. If providers are gathering information throughout the year and continually self-assuring their own practices, then by the time the ADC comes around, it should be an effortless process because all the information they need has already been collected. Secondly, don’t be scared. It is always better to be honest to the regulator about any non-compliance and provide an accurate picture of your operations. And lastly, don’t leave it to the last minute and make sure you submit on time.

Kai Rottmann: Paige, I’d really like to thank you for joining me on ASQAcast today to educate the sector. 

Paige O’Riley: Thanks for having me today Kai, it’s been great. 

Kai Rottmann: 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 conversation. You can find our podcasts on our website by heading to asqa.gov.au and searching podcasts. If you have any topics of interest 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.