Client
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
Scope of work
National Training Register Enhancement Project
Industry
Vocational education and training
Location
Australia-wide

Overview

The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) oversees Nationally Recognised Training across Australia, in partnership with state and territory governments. All Nationally Recognised Training is listed on the National Training Register, which provides the central source of truth for all users and systems in the VET sector.

The department committed to reform the National Training Register to support broader reforms of the training package development process. To support these reforms, the website – training.gov.au – needed new functionality and capabilities.

A modern website based on user, legislative, and digital accessibility expectations has been built. The new website has received wide endorsement from users and will soon be supported by an interactive authoring and administration system for training package developers and regulators.

Man wearing safety gear welding metal

Fast Facts

  • Improved user experience with enhanced search functionality and easier comparison of training packages.
  • New status indicators and opt-in email notification options.
  • User tips built into the system.
  • Downloadable reports based on search and filtering.
  • Cloud native application featuring .NET 8, built on Microsoft Azure.
  • Modernised web services for Australia’s national register of approved training packages and providers.

Business Opportunity

The National Training Register – training.gov.au – is the authoritative source of information on Nationally Recognised Training and Registered Training Organisations (RTOs).

It is a website that can help potential students find training packages across many areas of study across Australia. They can also check the currency of training and find units of competency or accreditation.

Over time, the website and its content management system (CMS) became outdated, failing to meet the evolving search and navigation expectations of users. As part of the reform program by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, Atturra was engaged to execute significant upgrades to the online platform and CMS.

Solution

Using the department’s existing design toolkit, Atturra Cloud Business Solutions assembled a skilled team of .NET and UX experts, to enhance the site.

The application technology had to be upgraded, and the architecture moved to the cloud. Hosting was moved to within the department’s tenancy for improved security and stability.

User requirements fed into the functionality – adding a clearer navigation panel and modern interface, improved search and filtering functions, and extra codified data fields, such as specialisations and work placement hours.

A strong collaboration with the department involved seeking ongoing input from the 10 Jobs and Skills Councils about the requirements. Agile processes facilitated regular releases, incorporating stakeholder input for continuous system refinement.

Outcomes achieved

On October 23rd 2024, the new training website –training.gov.au – was released. The streamlined site features user friendly navigation paths, enhanced search and reporting capabilities, and upgraded support and maintenance technology. Users can search and filter results and then download them. They can compare training packages and see which packages are currently under review by the regulators.

Users were impressed with the website’s useability, saying:

  • “The interface with this new version is really easy to use and navigate.”
  • “The layout makes it easy to find the information required.”
  • “It is user friendly, without much instruction required to find information.”
  • “Went beyond my expectations. I wasn’t sure what we would get after the current version. Well done to the designers.”

Technologies

  • C# with .NET 8
  • Microsoft Azure
  • Terraform for Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
  • Vue.js for front end
  • Azure SQL database
  • CKEditor for CMS collaboration features (future release)

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