Skills for Good - April 2025: Vocational Education Update, Level up your workforce and more

Tēnā koutou

I hope that like for so many New Zealanders, you were able to sneak a few days off over the Easter and Anzac period. We are however always intimately aware that for many of you, your organisation and staff don’t have this luxury and continue to provide essential services throughout the holiday period.

Late last week, you may have heard Minister Penny Simmonds announce the outcomes from her most recent consultation into the redesign of vocational education. This follows on from her earlier decision to disestablish Te Pūkenga, and the need to determine replacement structures for Te Pūkenga. What we know from this announcement is that on 1 January 2026, it is expected that Careerforce will simply transition as a business division out of Te Pūkenga, and as a business division into a yet to be defined Industry Skills Board (ISB). As has been the case throughout this reform journey, we do not expect any disruption for our employers and learners. You can find out more detail in the story below.

As a recipient of this newsletter, it is likely that you may also be a recipient of our monthly training reports that we send out, and that report on the progress of learners enrolled with Careerforce. I encourage you to review this each month, and particularly to identify learners whose progress may have stalled, and who may just need some extra support and/or encouragement. Plus of course, to be aware of and celebrate your staff who have completed their qualifications.

Finally, check out the inspiring story about Nanda, and of both her learning and career journey. We love telling these stories, so please keep sharing them with us.

Ngā mihi

Rod Bentham
Executive Director, Careerforce

Back in February 2019, the then Minister of Education, Chris Hipkins first announced the Reform of Vocational Education (RoVE). Our top priority throughout the reform journey since has been to avoid any disruption for our employers and learners. With Minister Simmonds most recent announcement, the same applies, and that you can have complete confidence in continuing to enrol your staff with Careerforce.

“So, if you’re a learner or an employer - keep going. Your qualifications are essential, and your training is valuable. There will be no disruption, your training stays on track,” Ms Simmonds says.

What you need to know from this announcement:

Via consultation on two options, the Minister has settled on an industry-led independent work-based learning model as the way forward, but with a modified approach to transition.
Industry Skills Boards (ISBs) will be established on 1 January 2026, with the number and coverage of these yet to be determined.
Work based learning divisions of Te Pūkenga (such as Careerforce) will transition into ISBs (as separate divisions) on 1 January 2026, and for a period of up to 2 years.
This transition approach allows time for further industry consultation around future form and function, including potential further transition into an industry-led private training enterprise (PTE).
Divisions of the ISBs such as Careerforce will continue to enrol learners, just as we do today.

Just as we transitioned into Te Pūkenga with no disruption for our employers and learners, we fully expect the same for our transition into an Industry Skills Board.

The TEC have now commenced consultation on Industry Skills Boards’ coverage, due to close Tuesday 20 May. Click here for more information, including how to submit feedback, and dates/times for TEC information webinars.

The TEC are also inviting industries to nominate representatives to help establish Industry Skills Boards. Click here for more information, including how to nominate. Nominations close 13 June.

For more information, check out the Minister’s media release, or go to the TEC site.

From volunteer housekeeper/laundry to qualified healthcare worker, Fernanda (Nanda) Alvares E Silva proves that dedication and upskilling can open doors to new opportunities.

Nanda arrived in New Zealand 10 years ago from Brazil with minimal English. Her Level 2 Certificate in Cleaning was followed by a Level 2 Certificate in Health and Wellbeing, shortly followed by a Level 3 Certificate in Health Assistance. Today, Nanda proudly celebrates graduating with her Level 4 Advanced Care and Support Apprenticeship.

Supported by her employer, Rangiora’s Bainswood on Victoria, and Careerforce, the health care assistant has not only advanced in her career but also mastered fluency in English.
Read about Nanda's journey >

Are your staff ready to take the next step? The Diploma in Business (Level 5) is a fantastic opportunity for team leaders, managers, or even yourself, to upskill and grow.

Strong leadership is the backbone of any successful organisation. Equipping your leaders and managers with the right skills and knowledge helps drive innovation, create positive change, and builds capability across your team.

This programme is designed for new and experienced leaders and managers, helping them deepen their leadership and management skills in a practical, work-based context that’s relevant to your organisation.

Enrolment - Any time during the year
Study Style - Work-based learning, 100% online, self-directed 8-12 hours per week with supporting online resources
Study Support - A leadership and management coach is provided for the duration of the programme
Duration – 20 months, part-time
Outcome - NZQA accredited Diploma (Level 5)

Get to know some of our amazing Business Level 5 graduates

For more information, or to speak to someone about the diploma, get in touch

‘Not enough time’ has consistently been the most significant barrier and by some margin, consistent with results from learner surveys to the same question. This reflects that learners are having to balance conflicting pressures on their time, across family life, work responsibilities, and their training. From the same survey, we know that while employers felt that ‘providing dedicated study time’ was the second most effective strategy to getting learners progressing, just 7% of employers actually provide this dedicated study time. We encourage you to consider how you can potentially support your staff to overcome time as a barrier.

‘Insufficient English skills’ has risen substantially across the years, expressed as a barrier by just 3% of employers in 2019, and now 12% in this most recent survey. This is not entirely surprising when you consider the changing make up of our learners in the ‘2024 at a glance’ story that follows. As we continually improve our learning and assessment resources, this is something that we will continue to consider very carefully.

All Careerfore training programmes have expected durations that are based on a TEC formula. However, one of the strengths of work-based learning is that it is self-paced, and learners have the flexibility to finish earlier or later. We are however aware of instances where learners are completing in an unrealistically short period, and this largely appears to be of instances where training agreements are not entered/processed until a learner is well into their learning journey, and where a large number of assessment results are entered simultaneously.

There are a number of reasons why it is important that training agreements are in place before training actually commences:

We have a requirement that any submitted assessments are marked within 10 working days of receipt of the assessment from the learner, and any results are entered into iportal within 5 days of completion. It is important that feedback is provided to learners between assessments, and that this can be reflected in their subsequent assessments. It is unfair on the learner if assessments are not marked in a timely fashion.
Careerforce offers a broad range of learner and employer supports, and unless a training agreement is entered into our system, we are simply not aware that a learner exists, and they will not receive the full suite of learner supports that Careerforce can provide. This includes our onboarding supports, our welcome packs, and the opportunity to participate in our various learner support workshops.
Given the absolute importance of the integrity of our awarded qualifications, unrealistically short training durations can also unnecessarily trigger alarm bells for investigations into academic misconduct.

Please ensure that all training agreements are submitted and processed at the very outset of learning. This ensures a fair and reasonable flow of assessments through to the learners’ assessor for marking and reporting. At a minimum, ensure all training agreements specify a start date that accurately reflects when learning actually commenced, such that recorded training durations accurately reflect the actual training durations.

Did You Know? Contract cheating is when a learner pays someone else to complete their assessments. These services may target learners directly or advertise online and on social media. Unfortunately, we are aware of organisations promoting such services to Careerforce learners.

Under New Zealand law, helping someone cheat is a criminal offence. Individuals offering these services face penalties of up to $10,000 per offence.

Risks to learners include:

Revocation of unit standards of qualifications
Legal consequences
Damage to personal and professional reputation

How you can help as an employer:

Encourage honest conversations about academic misconduct
Support learners with time, resources, and guidance
Stay engaged and watch for red flags

If you suspect contract cheating or would like support promoting academic integrity, please contact our moderation team

More information about academic misconduct is available here >

Careerforce is excited to launch a new specialisation/context for our Diploma in Health and Wellbeing (Level 5) Applied Practice: Reintegration/Rehabilitation (Prisoner Reintegration Services). This specialisation/context is ideal for staff who support the transition of prisoners into the wider community from the custody of Corrections. This is just one from 15 specialisations, each having a set of competencies the learner will need to demonstrate through their practice and embed within their assessments.
View the full list to see which contexts may be relevant for your staff >.

Find out more about:

Manaaki Fund for learners >>More
Achieve Study Hubs >>More
Free Wellbeing Support for Learners >>More
Careerforce forms - Please ensure you use the latest forms >>More
Apprenticeship Boost >>More
2025 Prospectus >>More
Jobs for Good - you can list your vacancy for free >>More
Free Counselling for all Careerforce | Te Pūkenga learners >>More
Te Pae Ora - Wellbeing hub for learners >>More
Careerforce Qualification Programmes >> More
Gateway and Vocational Pathways >>More
How to contact your local Careerforce Workplace Advisor >>More