🎙 In this episode of the RTO Superhero Podcast, Angela Connell-Richards and co-host Lauren Hollows tackle a confronting reality in Australia’s VET sector—how arbitrary funding decisions are crippling high-performing private RTOs.

Despite delivering 80% of Australia’s training, private RTOs receive just 30% of government funding. Even worse? RTOs with exceptional outcomes are being denied funding simply because their success happened in the “wrong” state.

🚨 What’s happening behind the scenes:

• 📉 Outstanding RTOs excluded from funding programs due to postcode politics
• 📊 “Mom and pop” RTOs pushed out by skyrocketing compliance costs
• 📈 One RTO slashed unit completion times from 400 to 84 days—just by using their own data better

Angela and Lauren unpack how this imbalance is reshaping Australia’s training landscape—and why it’s time to stop pitting TAFE vs. private RTOs and start building collaborative solutions.

✅ What you’ll learn in this episode:

• The real cost of underfunding private RTOs—and who’s paying for it
• Why compliance pressure is forcing quality providers out of the sector
• How data-driven management can dramatically improve performance
• What it will take to create a sustainable, student-focused training system

🎧 Tune in to hear what’s really happening—and how you can help fix it.

✍️ Support the cause: change.org/save_private_rtos

Send us a text

Join host Angela Connell-Richards as she opens each episode with a burst of insight and inspiration. Discover why compliance is your launchpad to success, not a limitation.

Connect with fellow RTO professionals in our free Facebook groups: the RTO Community and RTO Job Board. Visit rtosuperhero.au/groups to join today.

Ready to elevate your RTO? Join our Superhero Membership community and gain access to expert resources, training, and personalised support to help you thrive.

Wrap up with gratitude and guidance. Subscribe, leave a review, and join our community as we continue supporting your compliance journey in vocational education.

Support the show

Thank you for tuning in to the RTO Superhero Podcast!

We’re excited to have you join us as we focus on the Revised Standards for RTOs in 2025. Together, we’ll explore key changes, compliance strategies, and actionable insights to help your RTO thrive under the new standards.

Stay connected with the RTO Community:

• RTO Job Board Facebook
• RTO Job Board LinkedIn
• RTO Community Facebook

📌 Don’t forget to:
✔ Subscribe to the RTO Superhero Podcast so you never miss an episode!
✔ Share this episode with your RTO network—compliance is a team effort!

🎙 Listen now and get ahead of the compliance changes before it’s too late!

📢 Want even more compliance insights? Subscribe to our EduStream YouTube Channel for our FAQ series on the New Standards for RTOs 2025! 🎥

🔗 Subscribe now: EduStream by Vivacity Coaching

✉️ Email us at hello@vivacity.com.au
📞 Call us on 1300 729 455
🖥️ Visit us at vivacity.com.au

🎙 In this episode of the RTO Superhero Podcast, Angela Connell-Richards, with Lauren Hollows, dives into one of the biggest funding battles in Australia’s VET sector—the growing inequality between TAFE NSW and private RTOs.

Private RTOs are under increasing pressure as TAFE NSW now receives 80% of all Smart and Skilled funding—despite data showing private providers deliver better outcomes at lower costs.

🚨 Here’s what’s at stake:

• 📊 Private RTOs boast higher completion rates (54%) vs. TAFE’s 43%
• 💰 For every $1 spent on a private RTO, $3.34 is spent on TAFE
• ✅ Student and employer satisfaction consistently favours private providers

Angela explores the real impact of this funding imbalance, from regional RTO closures to TAFE’s capacity crisis—outdated facilities, digital access issues, and staff shortages.

She also uncovers the hidden flaw in “fee-free” training: ❗️low student commitment and poor completion rates, leading to wasted resources and skills shortages.

✅ What you’ll learn in this episode:

• Why the “dodgy RTO” myth doesn’t hold up to the data
• How current funding decisions risk collapsing the support ecosystem for quality training
• The unintended consequences of centralising training delivery
• What we must do now to protect student choice, innovation, and training diversity in Australia

🎧 Tune in to join the fight for fair, equitable funding—and learn how you can take action.

✍️ Sign the petition: change.org/save_private_rtos

Send us a text

Join host Angela Connell-Richards as she opens each episode with a burst of insight and inspiration. Discover why compliance is your launchpad to success, not a limitation.

Connect with fellow RTO professionals in our free Facebook groups: the RTO Community and RTO Job Board. Visit rtosuperhero.au/groups to join today.

Wrap up with gratitude and guidance. Subscribe, leave a review, and join our community as we continue supporting your compliance journey in vocational education.

Support the show

Thank you for tuning in to the RTO Superhero Podcast!

We’re excited to have you join us as we focus on the Revised Standards for RTOs in 2025. Together, we’ll explore key changes, compliance strategies, and actionable insights to help your RTO thrive under the new standards.

Stay connected with the RTO Community:

• RTO Job Board Facebook
• RTO Job Board LinkedIn
• RTO Community Facebook

📌 Don’t forget to:
✔ Subscribe to the RTO Superhero Podcast so you never miss an episode!
✔ Share this episode with your RTO network—compliance is a team effort!

🎙 Listen now and get ahead of the compliance changes before it’s too late!

📢 Want even more compliance insights? Subscribe to our EduStream YouTube Channel for our FAQ series on the New Standards for RTOs 2025! 🎥

🔗 Subscribe now: EduStream by Vivacity Coaching

✉️ Email us at hello@vivacity.com.au
📞 Call us on 1300 729 455
🖥️ Visit us at vivacity.com.au