Submission on the Education and Training (Vocational Education and Training System) Amendment Bill
Recreation Aotearoa welcomed the opportunity to submit on the Education and Training (Vocational Education and Training System) Amendment Bill.
Overview of general comments
We support the Bill’s intent to create a unified and cohesive vocational education and training system. However, our submission highlights key concerns about ensuring the recreation sector’s specific needs are understood and prioritised.
Recreation plays a vital role in the wellbeing of New Zealanders, supported by a skilled and qualified workforce. We cautioned against reforms that might unintentionally reduce regional access to training, disestablish successful existing providers, or further constrain funding for critical qualifications such as Outdoor Leadership and Aquatics.
Our submission also calls for:
- An industry-led approach to standards-setting and qualification development.
- Strong representation for smaller sectors within new Industry Skills Boards (ISBs).
- Funding models that maintain flexibility and recognise the high value of recreation-related qualifications.
- Greater accountability from the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) for funding decisions affecting specialist programmes.
We also raised serious concerns about the ongoing underfunding of Outdoor Instructor qualifications and the lack of resolution around their current misclassification. Without urgent reform, there is a real risk that essential training in outdoor instruction will no longer be available in New Zealand.
Read our submission
For more detail, please read:
Submission on the Education and Training (Vocational Education and Training System) Amendment Bill
Questions or feedback
If you have any questions, or want to share your views, contact our Advocacy Manager, Sam Newton, at sam@nzrecreation.org.nz
.