Higher Education Support (Central Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016

Administered by Department of Education

Legislation au F2016L00955 Not in force Legislative Instrument

Legislation content

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Notice of revocation of approval as a provider on request by the provider under
subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Higher Education Support Act 2003

 

Issued by the authority of the delegate of the Minister for Education and Training

Authority

 

Subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (the Act) requires the Minister to revoke a body’s approval as a vocational education and training (VET) provider under the Act if the body requests in writing that the Minister revoke its approval.

 

Subclause 39(3) of Schedule 1A to the Act requires the revocation to be given by notice in writing to the body; subclause 39(4) provides that the notice of revocation is a legislative instrument.

 

Under paragraph 238-5(1)(b) of the Act, the Minister has delegated his powers under subclauses 39(1) and 39(3) of Schedule 1A to the Act, to the position of Branch Manager, VET FEE-HELP Branch in the Skills Programmes Group of the Department of Education and Training.

 

Purpose

 

This legislative instrument (the Revocation) revokes the approval of Central Institute of Technology as a VET provider under subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Act.

 

The Revocation is one of 11 revocations of VET provider approvals under clause 39 of Schedule 1A to the Act which, combined with five VET provider approvals under clause 11 of Schedule 1A to the Act, address, for the purposes of the Act, the Western Australian government’s decision to rationalise the administration of TAFE college campuses under that government’s Training Sector Reform Project.  The related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals are:

 

  • Higher Education Support (Challenger Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (CY O'Connor Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Durack Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Goldfields Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Great Southern Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Kimberley Training Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Pilbara Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Polytechnic West) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South West Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (West Coast Institute of Training) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (North Metropolitan TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South Metropolitan TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (North Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Central Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016.

 

The Revocation and related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals will ensure that eligible students studying courses at Western Australian TAFE colleges will continue to be able to access VET FEE-HELP loans.

Background

Central Institute of Technology is a TAFE college established by the Western Australian government under the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 (WA VET Act).  The college was approved as a VET provider under the Act on 28 August 2009 (see VET Provider Approval No. 34 of 2009; Federal Register of Legislation reference F2009L03353). That approval enabled eligible students of the college to access
VET FEE-HELP loans under the Act.

On 24 February 2016, the Western Australian government announced that, pursuant to that government’s Training Sector Reform Project, the 11 colleges then established under the WA VET Act would be reduced to five.  The campuses of the Central Institute of Technology were, in future, to be administered by a new college established under the WA VET Act called the North Metropolitan TAFE.

On 26 February 2016, the Western Australian Minister for Training and Workforce Development made the Vocational Education and Training (Colleges Closure and Establishment) Order 2016 under the WA VET Act, which had the effect of closing the Central Institute of Technology and 10 other colleges, and establishing five new colleges in their place, with effect from 11 April 2016.

On 7 April 2016, Central Institute of Technology requested in writing that its approval as a VET provider under the Act be revoked.

Commencement

The Revocation takes effect on 11 April 2016, the date that the Central Institute of Technology was closed by the Vocational Education and Training (Colleges Closure and Establishment) Order 2016 under the
WA VET Act.

Consultation

The Department of Education and Training consulted with the Western Australian Department of Training and Workforce Development in relation to the Revocation and the related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals.

As the Revocation is the result of a voluntary request by the Central Institute of Technology itself for revocation of its approval under the Act, and the arrangements for approval of new TAFE colleges will ensure that no student of the college will be affected by the Revocation, no further consultation was considered necessary.


Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

 

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

 

The Higher Education Support (Central Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016 (the Revocation) is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

 

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

 

The Revocation is made by the Minister under subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (Act).  Under subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Act the Minister must revoke a body’s approval as a VET provider if the body requests, in writing, the Minister to do so.  On 7 April 2016, the college requested the Minister to revoke its approval, with effect from 11 April 2016, as the college was closing from that date.

 

The Revocation is one of 11 revocations of VET provider approvals under clause 39 of Schedule 1A to the Act which, combined with five VET provider approvals under clause 11 of Schedule 1A to the Act, address, for the purposes of the Act, the Western Australian government’s decision to rationalise the administration of TAFE college campuses under that government’s Training Sector Reform Project.  The related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals are:

 

  • Higher Education Support (Challenger Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (CY O'Connor Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Durack Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Goldfields Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Great Southern Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Kimberley Training Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Pilbara Institute) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Polytechnic West) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South West Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (West Coast Institute of Training) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (North Metropolitan TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South Metropolitan TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (North Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (Central Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016;
  • Higher Education Support (South Regional TAFE) VET Provider Approval 2016.

 

Central Institute of Technology is a TAFE college established by the Western Australian government under the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 (WA) (WA VET Act).  The college was approved as a
VET provider under the Act on 28 August 2009 (see VET Provider Approval No. 34 of 2009; Federal Register of Legislation reference F2009L03353). That approval enabled eligible students of the college to access VET FEE-HELP loans under the Act.

On 24 February 2016, the Western Australian government announced that, pursuant to that government’s Training Sector Reform Project, the 11 colleges then established under the WA VET Act would be reduced to five.  The campuses of the Central Institute of Technology were, in future, to be administered by a new college established under the WA VET Act called the North Metropolitan TAFE.

On 26 February 2016, the Western Australian Minister for Training and Workforce Development made the Vocational Education and Training (Colleges Closure and Establishment) Order 2016 under the WA VET Act, which had the effect of closing the Central Institute of Technology and 10 other colleges, and establishing five new colleges in their place, with effect from 11 April 2016.

The Revocation and related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals will ensure that students studying eligible courses at Western Australian TAFE colleges will continue to be able to access VET FEE-HELP loans.

Human rights implications

The Revocation engages the right to education, contained in Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. In particular, the Revocation has an effect on the provision of vocational education and training by Central Institute of Technology, as it revokes its approval as a VET provider under the Act, removing the ability for eligible students of the college to access VET FEE-HELP loans.

However students’ rights to education are unaffected by the Revocation, because student enrolments at the closed colleges have been transferred to the five new TAFE colleges established on 11 April 2016, which will deliver the same vocational training as the closed TAFE, mainly in the same campus locations. 

The new TAFE colleges are approved as VET providers from 11 April 2016. Eligible students will therefore continue to be able to access VET FEE-HELP loans under the Act for courses provided at the new TAFE colleges.

Conclusion

This Instrument is compatible with human rights because it does not affect the protection of human rights.

Overview

The Higher Education Support (Central Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016, enacted to address a specific issue arising from the Western Australian government's decision to rationalise the administration of TAFE college campuses under its Training Sector Reform Project, revokes the approval of Central Institute of Technology as a vocational education and training (VET) provider under the Higher Education Support Act 2003. The enactment of this legislative instrument by the Minister for Education and Training was a direct response to a written request from Central Institute of Technology, as stipulated in subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Act, and aims to ensure that eligible students continue to have access to VET FEE-HELP loans by transferring their enrolments to the newly established TAFE colleges. The revocation and related legislative actions are designed to maintain educational continuity and access to government support for students amidst the structural changes in the TAFE system.

Scope and Application

The Higher Education Support (Central Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016 applies to the Central Institute of Technology, a TAFE college established by the Western Australian government under the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996. The Act provides for the revocation of approval of the institute as a vocational education and training (VET) provider if the institute requests it in writing. This revocation aligns with the Western Australian government's decision to rationalise the administration of TAFE college campuses under the Training Sector Reform Project, which led to the closure of the Central Institute of Technology and the establishment of five new colleges. The revocation ensures that eligible students studying courses at Western Australian TAFE colleges can continue to access VET FEE-HELP loans. The revocation is effective from 11 April 2016 and is part of a series of legislative instruments addressing the reform, including both revocations and approvals of VET provider status. The revocation does not specify exclusions, exemptions, or thresholds but is made in response to a specific request by the institute and ensures continuity of service for students through new approved TAFE colleges.

Key Provisions

The Higher Education Support (Central Institute of Technology) VET Provider Approval Revocation 2016 (the Revocation) is a legislative instrument made under subclause 39(1) of Schedule 1A to the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (the Act) (s.3). The Revocation revokes the approval of Central Institute of Technology as a vocational education and training (VET) provider under the Act in response to a written request from the provider itself (s.2). The revocation is effective from 11 April 2016, the date the college was closed by the Vocational Education and Training (Colleges Closure and Establishment) Order 2016 under the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 (WA VET Act) (s.4). The Revocation is one of 11 revocations of VET provider approvals under clause 39 of Schedule 1A to the Act, which, combined with five VET provider approvals under clause 11 of Schedule 1A to the Act, address the Western Australian government's decision to rationalise the administration of TAFE college campuses under that government's Training Sector Reform Project (s.5). The Revocation and related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals will ensure that eligible students studying courses at Western Australian TAFE colleges will continue to be able to access VET FEE-HELP loans (s.5). The Act imposes obligations on the Minister for Education and Training to revoke a body’s approval as a VET provider if the body requests in writing that the Minister revoke its approval (Schedule 1A, s.39(1)). The Act also requires the Minister to give the body written notice of the revocation, which must be a legislative instrument (Schedule 1A, ss.39(3)-(4)). The Minister has delegated these powers to the Branch Manager, VET FEE-HELP Branch in the Skills Programmes Group of the Department of Education and Training (s.2). The Revocation and related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals ensure that the obligations of the Act are met by revoking the approval of the Central Institute of Technology and transferring student enrolments to the five new TAFE colleges that are approved as VET providers from 11 April 2016 (s.5). The Act does not provide for any offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences for breach in relation to the revocation of a VET provider’s approval. However, failure to comply with the Act's requirements for revocation may result in students being unable to access VET FEE-HELP loans for courses provided at the revoked provider (Schedule 1A, s.39(1)). The Revocation and related VET provider approval revocations and VET provider approvals ensure that eligible students studying courses at Western Australian TAFE colleges will continue to be able to access VET FEE-HELP loans (s.5).

Legal classification tags

Area of Law
Education Law
Instrument
Legislative Instrument
Concepts
Regulatory Standards
Reporting & Disclosure Obligations
Delegated & Subordinate Legislation
Rights & Protections

Interactions

Authorises

All Versions

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.