“Is the provider accredited?” is usually one of the first questions a supply chain office asks, and one of the least understood. Accreditation tells you something important about a training provider, but not everything. Here is a plain-language guide for HR, skills development and procurement teams.
The bodies behind the acronyms
SETAs (Sector Education and Training Authorities) were established under the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998. Each SETA serves a sector of the economy: it plans for that sector’s skills needs, manages skills development grants and supports learnerships and other workplace-based learning.
The QCTO (Quality Council for Trades and Occupations) is the quality council responsible for occupational qualifications on South Africa’s National Qualifications Framework. It oversees the design, quality assurance and certification of occupational qualifications, and accredits the skills development providers that offer them.
PSETA is the SETA for the public service sector, which includes national and provincial government departments. Services SETA covers a broad range of services-sector employers and occupations.
Why accreditation matters to buyers
- It shows that a quality assurance body has assessed the provider’s ability to deliver and assess the programmes in its scope.
- Credit-bearing programmes can lead to recognised credits or qualifications for learners, which matters for career progression and for skills development reporting.
- It gives your auditors and verification agents an independent reference point, rather than relying on the provider’s own claims.
Qualifications and their registration change over time as the system moves towards occupational qualifications, so it is always worth confirming with the provider how a specific programme is registered today.
Five questions to ask any training provider
- May we see your accreditation certificates and numbers? Check which body issued them, the programmes they cover and their validity dates, and confirm directly with the SETA or QCTO if in doubt.
- Is this particular programme credit-bearing? Some programmes are accredited; short awareness workshops often are not. Both have a place, but you should know which you are buying.
- How will learners be assessed, and what evidence will we receive? Ask for the assessment approach and the records you will hold at the end.
- Can you supply your B-BBEE certificate, tax compliance status and CSD registration? Public sector buyers will need these for the procurement file.
- What does your close-out file contain, and when will we receive it? Late or incomplete records are the most common cause of trouble after the training itself.
Accredited or not: choose for the outcome
Not every training need calls for a credit-bearing programme. A half-day briefing on a new policy may be exactly right as a non-credit workshop, while a learnership for new supervisors should be accredited. The key is to decide what outcome you need, then check that the provider’s accreditation and evidence match it.
How TTDC handles this
TTDC delivers programmes under PSETA, Services SETA and QCTO accreditation. Current accreditation certificates, our B-BBEE certificate, tax clearance and company registration documents are attached to every formal proposal, and every engagement closes with an audit-ready file within ten working days of the last session. See our accreditation details or request a quote.