Part 2: Proposals for new initial condition E7 - Effective governance

What are we proposing?

We are proposing to introduce a new initial condition of registration that would require a provider to have effective governance arrangements for the purpose of being a registered higher education provider. The proposed requirements that would make up this condition are discussed in detail later in this document.

We are proposing that this new condition would replace the existing initial conditions for management and governance, initial conditions E1 and E2. Therefore, if implemented, a provider would be assessed only in relation to the requirements of initial condition E7 when it seeks registration. We consider that this would reduce complexity and burden for providers by reducing the number of initial conditions that relate to management and governance.

Our initial view is that the proposed requirements for initial condition E7 would be sufficient to provide a robust assessment of a provider’s governance arrangements at the point of registration. This would remove the need to assess the requirements in the current initial conditions E1 and E2 at registration.

We are not proposing to make any changes to the management and governance requirements for registered providers (the ongoing conditions) at this time. This means that conditions E1 and E2 will remain in place as ongoing conditions and registered providers will have to continue to meet these requirements. This would include any providers registered under initial condition E7, if it is introduced.