On this page:

• Engagement on proposed content for ISB Orders in Council
• Update on proposed ISB industry coverage 
• Introducing the Establishment Advisory Groups for the ISBs 
• The role of the Establishment Advisory Groups

Engagement on proposed content for ISB Orders in Council

We invite you to use the engagement response form below to provide feedback on proposed content for Orders in Council for each Industry Skills Board (ISB). Please submit your feedback by the end of Tuesday 23 September 2025.

The engagement response form asks questions about proposed content that may be included in the Orders in Council for each ISB. The proposed content covers four topics:

1. How ISBs manage the assets and income for work-based learning they may be temporarily hosting
2. Requiring ISBs to collaborate on areas of mutual interest
3. Requiring ISBs to engage with industries, and 
4. Who an ISB has to consult with when developing a Statement of strategic direction.

Before filling out the engagement response form, please read this short overview of proposals, which provides some additional context.

Proposed content of ISB Orders in Council (PDF 418 KB)

Your feedback will inform the Ministry of Education’s development of draft Orders in Council, which need to be passed to establish each ISB as a new legal entity. An Order is a type of legislation issued by the Governor-General. An ISB’s Order fulfils a similar purpose to a corporate constitution or a charity’s rules.

How to provide feedback

Please use the engagement response form provided here. It is the best way to share your feedback on the proposed content of the ISB Orders.

Engagement Response Form (opens in new window)

Next steps

This engagement will inform the full Orders in Council.

The Ministry will conduct formal consultation on the full drafts of the Orders in Council at the end of October 2025 after the Amendment Bill has passed. The draft Orders will include the technical aspects needed to set up ISBs and describe their industry coverage in a schedule.

Update on proposed ISB industry coverage

The agreed ISBs will have the following broad coverage areas:

• Automotive, transport and logistics
• Construction and specialist trades
• Food and fibre
• Health and community
• Infrastructure
• Manufacturing and engineering
• Services
• Electrotechnology and information technology.

If you provided feedback on the proposed coverage to TEC before the end of August, your suggestions may already have been incorporated into our proposed coverage list. See the document below:

Proposed industry coverage for ISBs for pre-consultation engagement (PDF 699 KB)

This table shows the key shifts of industry sectors resulting from advice from industry.

Some creative industry members requested creative industries to be shifted from Services ISB to Electrotechnology and Information Technology ISB during TEC’s industry engagement in August. The schedule linked above shows this change; however, it is still under consideration. 

As well as the changes in the table above, we have made several minor changes to the sector descriptions and the allocation of Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) codes.

In response to feedback, we have reworded some descriptions to include specific sub-industries but did not change the responsible ISB for those changes. We also corrected some inconsistencies between sector descriptions and ANZSICs. 

As mentioned above, the Ministry will conduct formal consultation on the full drafts of the Orders in Council at the end of October 2025 after the Amendment Bill has passed. This will be the next opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed ISB industry coverage. 

Frequently asked questions about ISB coverage 

This section answers questions we have received from industry stakeholders about ISB coverage. 

Why do the proposed ISB coverage lists show the ANZSIC (industry) codes rather than the ANZSOC (occupation) codes? 

ANZSIC codes are a standard system used to describe industries, not skills or occupations. The ISBs are based on industry sectors. This makes the ANZSIC codes the most accurate choice for the Orders in Council which will establish the ISBs. We will also ensure the Orders in Council include sector descriptions alongside the ANZSIC codes. 

Why can’t I see all industries listed in the ISB proposed coverage list? 

The sector descriptions come from the collection of existing qualifications and credentials. Some industries and occupations do not currently have vocational education and training (ie, non-degree level) qualifications and credentials. If vocational qualifications and credentials do not exist for an occupation, skill or industry, it may not be listed here.

If any vocational education and training qualifications and credentials are developed for an occupation, skill or industry in the future, we could then add it to the most relevant ISB. Industry would be informed of any such change at the time.

Introducing the Establishment Advisory Groups for the ISBs 

We are pleased to announce the members of these Establishment Advisory Groups (EAGs) for the Industry Skills Boards. All appointments were taken from the nominations we received from industry. Some nominations were not able to be progressed due to conflicts with current work by some industry groups on establishing industry-owned private training establishments (PTEs) to take over the delivery of work-based learning in the future from Te Pūkenga business divisions.

Appointing members to these groups is a key milestone in achieving the redesign of the vocational education and training system and ensuring that training aligns with industry needs and priorities. The members of the EAGs are expected to also transition across to form part of the membership of the new ISB Boards.

There is a dedicated Establishment Advisory Group for each Industry Skills Board that will be established in January 2026. These groups bring together a diverse mix of leaders selected for their deep expertise in the tertiary education sector, their strong connections to industries and their proven governance capabilities. 

We are pleased to have them undertake this work on behalf of industry.  

The role of the Establishment Advisory Groups

Establishment Advisory Groups make "in principle" decisions about the design of the new Industry Skills Boards. These decisions are intended to be confirmed by the Boards when they are established.

The key tasks for Establishment Advisory Groups will be to:

• finalise the details of industry coverage for the relevant ISB
• select (via a recruitment process) a Chief Executive-designate who can be appointed by the Board of the ISB once established
• endorse key policies that the governing body may need to adopt from 1 January 2026
• oversee the preparation of documentation that the governing body and the Chief Executive of the organisation will require on 1 January 2026 
• endorse a "starting" organisational structure for ISB delivery of functions and responsibilities from 1 January 2026, and determine which roles from the WDCs will transition into which ISB.

The Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) will provide information and administrative support to the EAGs.

During 2025 the current Workforce Development Councils continue to be the voice for industries in the tertiary education and training system. The EAGs' role is exclusively to perform a defined set of set up functions for the new ISBs which do not start operating until 2026.