7. Conditions, suspension and revocation of program accreditation

Under section 20(3) of the TA Act, NESA can place conditions on, suspend or revoke an accredited program at any time.

7.1 Program accreditation may be subject to conditions

NESA may place conditions for a specified timeframe on an accredited initial teacher education program. For example when:

• an accreditation requirement is not met (eg the program is piloting new initiatives still in development at the time of the program application)
• it is practical and necessary to accommodate national and/or NSW reforms in initial teacher education, or
• it is practical and necessary to support NESA’s quality assurance of programs.

Conditions must relate to the program meeting or continuing to meet identified accreditation requirements (see Section 5.1 of the policy). A condition must also specify a timeframe it is to be complied by that NESA considers to be proportionate and necessary. If appropriate, NESA may amend the condition(s) and the specified timeframe.

Conditions come into effect through NESA’s written notice to the provider, which must include the reasons for the decision and their right to apply for internal review of the decision (see Section 8 of the policy).

An accredited program that is subject to conditions will continue to be listed on NESA’s website as accredited. Providers can advertise that the program is accredited with NESA.

7.2 Suspension or revocation of an accredited program

A decision to suspend or revoke a program’s accreditation is only available when NESA is satisfied that the program does not meet, or no longer meets the accreditation requirements (see Section 5.1 of the policy), which is based on an assessment and recommendation by the Program Accreditation Review Panel (see Section 7.3 of the policy).

Suspension must specify proportionate and necessary conditions and timeframes that the provider must meet before the program’s accreditation can be reinstated.

Revocation will be limited to the most serious of cases where NESA has decided, based on the Program Accreditation Review Panel’s recommendation, that an accredited program has failed to meet accreditation requirements in spite of NESA’s intervention, and placing conditions or suspension to the program’s accreditation is found to be inappropriate.

A decision to suspend or revoke a program’s accreditation means that the program is not an ‘approved course’ as defined in the TA Act from the date that the provider is notified in writing. Teacher education students who are scheduled to complete and receive a qualification from the program during the period in which its accreditation is suspended or revoked, may not be eligible for Provisional Accreditation under Section 30(2)(b) of the TA Act.

For programs subject to suspension, if the provider satisfies the conditions and NESA reinstates the program’s accreditation, teacher education students who complete the program and will receive a qualification after the date of reinstatement will be eligible for Provisional Accreditation.

If a program’s accreditation is suspended or revoked, enrolled teacher education students must be notified in writing by the provider of this and the consequences of the accreditation status. The program’s change of accreditation status will be published on the NSW list of accredited programs on the NESA website.

7.3 Assessment by the Program Accreditation Review Panel

NESA officers monitor accredited programs through annual reporting processes. Providers should contact NESA for advice and support to help them meet their program accreditation requirements.

Where NESA officers identify that an accredited program may not be meeting its accreditation requirements and/or conditions, they will discuss these issues with the provider. If the issues are of a serious nature and NESA officers identify the need for intervention, they will liaise with the provider to develop a plan to address the issues within a specified timeframe. A NESA officer will provide a report to the Executive Director, School and Teaching Standards who has the discretion to place a condition on the program’s accreditation as a result.

If after the specified timeframe, the NESA officer identifies that the accredited program has not addressed the issues in the plan, the NESA officer will inform the provider in writing that the program will be assessed by a Program Accreditation Review Panel (see Section 9.3 of the policy). The Review Panel can make a recommendation to NESA about the program’s accreditation, including placement of conditions, suspension or revocation.

NESA’s written notice regarding the Program Accreditation Review Panel to the provider must include:

• the reasons why the Review Panel is assessing the program’s accreditation
• details on the provider’s opportunity to respond to the Review Panel
• any supporting material it considers relevant to the assessment, within a timeframe that is not less than 28 days of the written notice.

The Program Accreditation Review Panel will consider all available evidence, together with the provider’s response to make a recommendation to NESA. As part of their assessment, the Panel may request further information or clarification by the Provider.

NESA will consider the Program Accreditation Review Panel’s recommendation to make a determination about the program’s accreditation and inform the provider in writing of the decision about the program’s accreditation and inform the provider in writing of the decision about the program’s accreditation.

The written notice regarding the program’s accreditation must include the:

• reasons for the decision, and
• provider’s right to apply for internal review of the decision if dissatisfied with the outcome (see Section 8 of the policy).