Search for builder CPD in NSW and you will find providers describing themselves as “Fair Trading recognised”, “approved” or “registered”, and articles warning that CPD done through an unapproved provider will be rejected at renewal. It is repeated often enough that builders ask about it before anything else. It is also wrong, and the regulator’s own page says so.
The short version
NSW approves activities, by description, not providers. Learning that earns 1 point per hour can be delivered by any training provider with industry expertise, and Building Commission NSW does not endorse providers at all. Only the 2-point-per-hour tier needs an accredited deliverer: an RTO or an Australian university.
What the NSW Government page actually says
The CPD page for builders and swimming pool builders sets out two rates. Interactive learning on an approved topic, with identifiable learning outcomes, delivered by a provider with industry expertise, earns 1 point per hour, and the page states that activities at that rate can be delivered by any training provider. Learning with an assessable outcome tied to a National Training Package or a university qualification earns 2 points per hour and must be delivered by a Registered Training Organisation or an Australian university. The same page states plainly that Building Commission NSW cannot and does not endorse any provider of training or CPD.
That is the whole rule. There is no provider register, no approval number, no application a provider can make. A builder’s job at audit is to show that each activity met the description for the rate claimed.
Why the confusion exists
- The 2-point tier really does need accreditation. If you want 2 points an hour, the deliverer must be an RTO or a university and the learning must be assessed against a training package or a degree. Providers who sell that tier are right to mention their RTO number. The error is applying the same requirement to the 1-point tier.
- Older terminology. The scheme used to talk about categories of activity, and some sites still say “Category 1” and “Category 2”. Old language tends to travel with old assumptions.
- Marketing. “Fair Trading recognised” is a reassuring phrase for a provider to put on a home page. It is not a status the regulator issues.
The four tests that actually matter
For a 1-point-per-hour activity, the questions to ask are about the activity, not the badge on the website:
- Is it interactive? You make decisions, answer questions, work through scenarios. A recorded talk with no participation is not interactive learning.
- Is it on an approved topic? Technical issues, sustainability, compliance, communication, dispute resolution, contracts, safety or business management. The topic should be stated.
- Does it have identifiable learning outcomes? The course says what you will be able to do at the end of it.
- Does the provider have industry expertise? The people who wrote and reviewed it know the building industry.
If all four are yes, the activity fits the description. Keep the course outline that shows it, and the record of attendance the provider issues. That is your evidence.
What to check on a certificate instead
The NSW page describes what a provider’s record of attendance should contain, and it is the audit evidence you will rely on for three renewal periods: your name and licence number, the course title and its CPD topic area, a course code, the date and location, the duration, the type of assessment, the trainer and organisation, and the points earned. A certificate carrying those fields does its job whether or not the provider is an RTO. A certificate carrying an RTO number but none of those fields does not.
Where the RTO question is real: if a provider says a course earns 2 points per hour, check the provider on the national training register at training.gov.au and ask which unit of competency or qualification the assessment maps to. If they cannot say, treat the course as 1 point per hour.
What this means for how you choose CPD
Ignore recognition claims the regulator has said it does not issue. Read the course description against the four tests. Prefer providers who explain the basis on which their courses earn points rather than asserting an approval, because at audit the explanation is what you will need. PointCPD sets out its own position on the accreditation page: every course is built to the 1-point tier description, the topic is printed on the certificate, and we do not claim any recognition beyond that.
The full set of NSW rules, including rates, topics, carry-forward and records, is in the complete NSW builder CPD guide.
Questions builders ask
Is there a list of NSW Fair Trading approved CPD providers for builders?
No. The NSW Government page states that Building Commission NSW cannot and does not endorse any provider of training or CPD. Any site claiming to be on an approved list is describing something that does not exist.
Does my CPD certificate need an RTO number?
Only if you are claiming 2 points per hour, which requires an RTO or university delivering assessed learning tied to a national training package or degree. For 1-point-per-hour interactive learning an RTO number is irrelevant.
How do I know a CPD course will count, then?
Judge the activity against the four tests NSW sets for the 1-point tier: interactive, on one of the eight approved topics, with identifiable learning outcomes, from a provider with industry expertise. Keep the course outline and the record of attendance as your evidence that it met them.
Sources: NSW Government, Continuing professional development for builders and swimming pool builders.