NQC Equity Statement.pdf - National Skills Standards Council

National Quality Council Equity Statement
This statement articulates the equity operating principles that underpin all functions of the National
Quality Council and guide all those who work on its behalf.
Context
The National Quality Council is a Committee of the Ministerial Council for Vocational and Technical
Education (MCVTE), and oversees quality assurance and ensures national consistency in the
application of the Australian Quality Training Framework standards for the audit and registration of
training providers.
It has specific decision-making powers in relation to the endorsement of Training Packages and other
aspects of quality assurance under the National Skills Framework.
Council decisions shape vocational education and training systems, products and services and
consequently have considerable impact on learners and potential learners throughout Australia.
Given the close relationship between fairness, equity and quality, the Council has adopted the
following set of operating principles to ensure that its policies, products and services contribute to
the creation of an inclusive VET system and do not exclude or unfairly disadvantage potential
learners.
Definitions
The following definitions have been adopted to guide the Council’s approach to equity management.
Equity
The principles and practices of fairness and impartiality in ensuring that all members of a
community have appropriate and equitable access to and potentially equal outcomes from the
opportunities, resources, goods and services provided by an enterprise.
Diversity
The human and social differences within a population, particularly those differences that are
significant in terms of access to goods and services and participation in the workplace and the
community.
Equity and diversity management
The continual organisational process of recognising the effects of the relationship between social
and human differences and the provision of goods and services and workplace participation and
incorporating that recognition into policy and practice to minimise the potential disadvantages of
diversity, to optimise its benefits, to ensure social justice and ethical behaviour, and to promote and
maintain inclusiveness and social cohesion (adapted from Bean, cited in Bowman 2004).
Premises
The equity operating principles are founded upon the following underlying premises:
• Equity is everybody’s business and this needs to be reflected in the policies, procedures and
practices of organisations.

• The provision of high quality education and training is a prerequisite for the achievement of
a fair and inclusive society.
• Creating accessible and productive learning opportunities and outcomes for clients with
particular needs, may require the co-ordination of policies, programs and services across
other areas of government.
• Membership of an identified equity group does not necessarily mean that an individual
suffers a learning or employment hindrance. Equally, members of equity groups may
encounter barriers other than those associated with their ‘category’ of disadvantage.
Education and training policies and programs, therefore, need to reflect this diversity.
Operating Principles
The following operating principles will guide all aspects of the National Quality Council’s work.
1. The NQC will adopt an integrated approach to the management of equity and diversity so
that all its policies and practices create an organisational culture where differences of
culture, background, and ability are recognised, understood, and catered for in all aspects of
its work.
2. The NQC will focus on selected broad client groups as well as enhance the capacity of the
VET system to respond to a diversity of clients.
3. The NQC recognises that its policies, products and services have the potential to
differentially affect various social and cultural groups. All policies, practices, products and
services of the NQC will be assessed to eliminate or minimise any adverse impacts on
different learners or potential learners
4. The NQC recognises the power of vocational education and training policies and practices to
produce and maintain social equity. The NQC will support policies and practices, which
support this objective. It will also challenge policies and practices - within its mandate - that
privilege certain groups of students and exclude others.
5. The NQC will develop its policies, products and services with regard for the flexibility,
resources and support needed at the point of delivery to encourage and support equitable
participation in nationally recognised training.
6. The NQC will actively support and seek the advice of the National VET Equity Advisory
Council and other organisations that enhance the NQC’s capacity to contribute to the
creation of an inclusive VET system.
7. The NQC will evaluate the impact of its policies and products on equity groups using client
group access, participation and completion data, its own evaluative research and any new
performance indicators developed and reported on by NCVER.