Kia ora koutou,

With the National Outdoors Hui happening this week, I wanted to share a quick update and a bit of context around some of the changes we’ve made, including a few tough decisions that affect the outdoor community.

Unfortunately, we can’t be there in person, but we felt it was important to share where things are at, and to reaffirm our commitment to the sector.

As many of you know, the last year has been a challenging one. Between funding pressures, sector reform, and a large amount of uncertainty, we’ve had to take a hard look at what we could realistically continue to deliver, and what we needed to let go of.

That’s meant retiring some programmes we’ve held in high regard, including several in the outdoor space. The truth is, there just wasn’t enough demand from the sector or support from funders under current settings to keep them viable. Especially with the removal of employer subsidies and tighter visa pathways. It’s a real loss, and we know it affects instructors, guides, assessors, and the wider community who care deeply about this mahi.

But I want to be clear: we’re not stepping away.

For 2025, we’re continuing to deliver:

• Outdoor Experiences (Levels 3 and 4)
• Outdoor Leadership (Level 4 – selected strands)
• Rafting qualifications (via limited credit programmes)

We’re also rolling out our Tikanga programme across all sector, including outdoors, and scoping an applied leadership programme that we hope will resonate with kaupapa-led practitioners in the outdoors.

At the same time, we’re pushing hard for better system recognition, especially around the health, safety, and wider wellbeing outcomes that outdoor learning supports.

Looking ahead, we also want to be upfront: with unit standards under review and changes coming, any continuation of the outdoor leadership strands would require significant investment to rebuild and redevelop those programmes. Combined with current enrolment levels and limited funding available, there is a real risk that these, too, may need to be retired. No final decisions have been made, but it’s something we’re actively monitoring. If this mahi is important to you, now is the time to kōrero with us and explore what the future could look like, together.

So yes, our offerings may look different. But our purpose hasn’t changed.

Retiring programmes has given us space to build something new. Something more sustainable and, we hope, even more relevant. That said, we know this has meant fewer options for learners right now, and we don’t take that lightly.

We’ve got strong representation from the outdoors sector on our Skills Active shareholding. If you want to be part of shaping what comes next: programme design, mentoring, strategic direction, we’d love to hear from you. Whether through your sector representatives or directly with us, the door is always open.

We’ve stood with this sector for over 30 years. That hasn’t changed. We’re still here, and we’re still backing the people and the kaupapa that make this sector what it is.

Ngā mihi nui, Maren

Published: June 9, 2025 Context: Shared in alignment with the National Outdoors Hui, 13 June 2025