The Australian higher education sector is undergoing a range of reviews and governance changes that are affecting and have the potential to impact the regulatory environment in which providers operate.

Key changes currently being undertaken directly in relation to the issues the proposed guidance notes respond to include: the Department of Education’s Support for Students Policy guidelines, the Australian Government’s review of the Higher Education Standards Framework, the Commonwealth’s National Action Plan to address gender-based violence in higher education and the proposed National Student Ombudsman, and the Australian Government’s Universities Accord.

Within this rapidly evolving environment, in which many regulatory and legislative reforms have been and are likely to be implemented, UA suggests TEQSA postpone the release of these guidance notes until the full impact of all of these changes has taken effect. This will allow TEQSA’s guidance to be more impactful and beneficial to the sector and help to eliminate inconsistencies in the regulatory environment.

Whilst guidance on the regulatory environment, especially regarding provider accreditation and clarity on the intersection of the regulatory environment would be useful, a stable context in which to enable providers to fulfill their obligations to their communities and the regulatory bodies is essential.

To support future Guidance Notes concerning these specific areas, UA makes several suggestions for TEQSA’s consideration.

UA has provided several suggestions and recommendations, including:

• Guidance notes play a useful role in supporting the sector to successfully implement the Threshold Standards across all areas of the Higher Education Standards Framework under the TEQSA Act.
• The guidance notes in question have the potential to be particularly useful in providing guidance for negotiating the changing regulatory and governance environment arising from the various reviews affecting the sector.
• The role of TEQSA in this regard, particularly within the student welfare space, will be particularly important. However, to be effective in supporting providers, postponing the finalisation and release of current guidance notes until after potential changes to the Threshold Standards are complete will be highly valuable in providing stability to the sector and reducing the need for additional review.
• Language and scoping clarification is needed within future Guidance Notes to account for nuances in the higher education sector, the broader social context and the remit of what providers areresponsible for under the TEQSA Act.