Nous Group was engaged to undertake the Independent Review of the National Skills Agreement (NSA) Stewardship Model to assess the effectiveness and performance of the stewardship model in supporting evidence-informed collaborative action to deliver on shared national priorities.
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About the Review
The NSA, which commenced on 1 January 2024, introduced a new model of joint stewardship of the national vocational education and training (VET) system, supporting governments to work collaboratively towards agreed national priorities and outcomes while maintaining flexibility for jurisdictions to respond to local skills needs.
The purpose of the Review was to assess the operation and effectiveness of the NSA stewardship model during its first two years of implementation and identify opportunities to strengthen its future development. The Review examined how stewardship is being implemented in practice, including the effectiveness of stewardship processes, collaboration arrangements and evidence-informed decision-making mechanisms.
The audience for this Review was Skills Ministers and senior officials responsible for oversight of the NSA stewardship model. The Executive Report has been published to support transparency and shared learning across the national VET system.
Consultation and Methodology
The Review was underpinned by an agreed evaluation framework and overseen by a Governance Group comprising of Commonwealth and state and territory representatives. It involved consultation with Skills Ministers, Commonwealth, state and territory skills officials and VET sector stakeholders, a literature review on international models of stewardship and desktop analysis of government documents. Nous Group presented the findings of the Review to the Skills and Workforce Ministerial Council (SWMC) for consideration on 19 June 2026.
Executive Report
Skills Ministers have released the Executive Report for the Independent Review of the National Skills Agreement Stewardship Model.
The Review found that the stewardship model is largely established and delivering early benefits, including stronger collaboration, improved alignment around national priorities and a stronger evidence base to support decision-making. The Review also found that stewardship remains difficult to distinguish from routine intergovernmental activity and that opportunities exist to further clarify and strengthen the practice of stewardship, evidence-informed decision-making and system alignment.
Recommendations
The Review made three recommendations to strengthen the operation of the stewardship model:
- Focus on the practice of stewardship and reaffirm its intent.
- Strengthen system-level evidence, learning and feedback loops.
- Streamline intergovernmental activity to unlock more capacity for stewardship.
Together, the recommendations seek to support the continued maturation of the stewardship model.
Next Steps
Skills Ministers agreed that the next phase of work should focus on maturing stewardship practice across the VET system by deepening understanding and articulating the roles and responsibilities of all actors in the system, strengthening coordination, and improving system learning and feedback systems.