Our Board and Secretariat recognise the scale of the task ahead of us this year. Our advocacy efforts will continue to focus on the return of our students onshore, sector-wide support and employment assistance (JobKeeper or an alternative) and positioning our sector for the future.
Sector support
Our sector is hurting, and we are urging the government to recognise how vulnerable we are and will continue to be until borders reopen at scale. A critical aspect of our advocacy in 2021 will be around dedicated financial support and employment assistance via JobKeeper’s extension and expansion to all ELICOS colleges, whether they are a private college or university-based. I understand how perilously close many of our member colleges are to closing, and we want to assure you that we are doing everything possible to prevent this and further job losses.
Joint peak body advocacy
This month English Australia joined forces with the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA), the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA) and the Independent Higher Education Association Australia (IHEA) to write two letters calling for support of our sector. The first letter to the Prime Minister and relevant Federal Ministers focused on the need for an extension of wage support via JobKeeper (or an equivalent program) beyond March 2021. The second letter to the Prime Minister and all members of the National Cabinet requested the provision of an indicative date for the return of international students in 2021 and for National Cabinet to provide some positive messaging that, Australia is a safe, welcoming study destination country and determined to permit international students to return to study as soon as it is safe to do so.
Border reopening
We might easily fall into pessimism given the lack of industry recognition throughout 2020. The Government’s focus has clearly been on returning Australian citizens, but English Australia will keep pressuring the government to ensure our students are valued and return as quickly as possible.
As noted above, we will work collectively with our colleagues from other peak bodies and continue to advocate for state, territory and federal governments to adopt our ‘Safe Travels’ pilot program in partnership with goPassport. I meet regularly with state, territory and federal governments to refine this initiative so that our submissions align with the requirements of each jurisdiction and will advise you of any new developments. Thank you to members that responded to the recent call for involvement in the NSW government program. Further information on the next steps will be provided soon.
I am eagerly awaiting the outcome of the National Cabinet meeting on 5 February 2021. Fingers crossed the international arrival caps will be lifted on February 15.
Ministerial appointments
Members would be aware of the changes in Federal ministerial roles that occurred toward the end of last year. English Australia has written to the new Minister for Education and Youth, the Hon. Alan Tudge, to highlight our sector’s need for urgent support, and I look forward to meeting with the Minister soon. We also wrote and welcomed the former Minister for Education, the Hon. Dan Tehan, into his new role as Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. We look forward to continuing to work with Minister Tehan in his new portfolio given the critical nexus that our sector has with the Tourism industry.
Government and regulator liaison
I have met with senior representatives from the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE), TEQSA and ASQA over recent weeks. The discussion with DESE focused on the development of the new national strategy, which will be undertaken this year.
The discussions with ASQA and TEQSA centred around the challenges faced by members and their need for continued support from the regulators, similar to the approach taken last year.
Quarterly and Annual ELICOS survey
A big thank you to all members who have completed our fourth quarter’s ELICOS Market Insight Survey. You may have noted the additional employment-related questions in this survey. The ability to accurately quantify the impact on our sector based on (all visas) student data and any employment changes provides significant ammunition as we fight for sector support.
The survey is due to close this coming week, so please contact Svetlana (svetlana.cruz@bonard.co) from BONARD if you have not yet submitted your data.
The Annual ELICOS market survey will commence in a couple of weeks and you will receive an invitation to complete the survey from BONARD. Please note, this survey contains some unique fields separate from the quarterly survey, however, a streamlined process is available for colleges that have participated in the four quarterly surveys.
Upcoming forums – the future of ELICOS
As I noted in December, English Australia will be leading a series of member forums in the coming months with you, our members, and representatives from the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE), ASQA and TEQSA. We believe it is critical to have clarity on aspects of ELICOS delivery that will evolve (or be preserved) based on learnings from last year. DESE and our regulators have committed to being involved in these forums, which will ensure alignment in future policy development and implementation.
