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LANDSCAPE DESIGN SURVEY
Designing our future

Professional Practice in Landscape Design
OSCA Classification Evidence — 2026

Why this survey matters

In Australia, every occupation has an official government classification — part of a system called OSCA, maintained by the Bureau of Statistics — that determines whether it is treated as a trade or a professional discipline. You may never have heard of it, but it directly shapes what qualifications exist, how careers are structured, and how the profession is valued. Right now, Landscape Designer sits in the same category as trade technicians. Interior Designers, Landscape Architects, Graphic Designers, and Fashion Designers are all classified as professionals. The LDI is asking the ABS to reclassify Landscape Designers from a technician to a professional.

In 2024, after years of advocacy, the LDI succeeded in getting Landscape Design recognised as its own occupation — separate from landscaping trades and from Landscape Architecture. That was the first step. Now, with the national qualification framework also under review, we have a rare window to go further: to secure a professional classification and open the door to genuinely creative, design-focused training and career pathways for the next generation.

To make the case, we need evidence from practitioners like you — about the complexity of your work, how long it takes to become truly competent, and what professional practice really looks like. This survey takes around 15 minutes. All responses are confidential and you can choose to be anonymous.
This survey closes Tuesday 28th July 2026.
Section A: Your Background
1.How do you describe your occupation to clients and colleagues?(Required.)
2.What is your highest relevant qualification?(Required.)
3.Do you hold any other relevant qualifications? (Tick all that apply)(Required.)
4.How many years have you been practising as a Landscape Designer?(Required.)
5.In which state or territory do you primarily practice?(Required.)
6.How do you work?
'Practice' refers to a landscape design or landscape architecture studio.(Required.)
7.If you employ other Landscape Designers, or were recruiting one, where would you advertise? (Tick all that apply)
Answer even if you have not yet recruited — describe what you would do.(Required.)
8.What would you be looking for when recruiting a Landscape Designer? Please describe what skills your ideal candidate would offer.(Required.)
9.What would you be looking for when recruiting a Landscape Designer? Please describe what qualifications your ideal candidate would offer.(Required.)
10.What would you be looking for when recruiting a Landscape Designer? Please describe what experience your ideal candidate would offer.(Required.)
Section B: Time to Competence
11.After completing your formal qualification, approximately how many years of practice did it take before you felt confident to independently manage the full range of professional responsibilities of a Landscape Designer?
This includes independently managing client relationships, preparing DA documentation, specifying materials and structures, and taking full professional responsibility for outcomes.(Required.)
12.Did you have a mentor, experienced practitioner, or supervisory arrangement during your early career?(Required.)
13.In your view, should the current Diploma of Landscape Design (AHC50621), taken alone, be considered sufficient preparation for independent professional practice?(Required.)
Section C: Scope and Complexity of Your Work
14.Which of the following tasks do you regularly perform as part of your professional practice? (Tick all that apply)(Required.)
15.Have you ever provided a professional report, certificate, expert opinion, or formal specification relied upon by a client, council, builder, or regulatory body?(Required.)
16.In your work as a Landscape Designer, do you collaborate with any of the following other professionals? (Tick all that apply)(Required.)
Section D: Creative Attributes
17.Do you consider Landscape Design to be a creative profession — one where talent, design sensibility, experience and professional commitment are as important as formal qualifications?(Required.)
18.Do you think a highly skilled, creative and experienced Landscape Designer can produce professional work in line with the standard of work produced by other established design disciplines?(Required.)
19.Thinking about a typical working week, approximately what proportion of your time is spent on design and office-based work, compared to on-site or construction visits?
Not including initial client consultations on site.(Required.)
Section E: Your Experience and Views
20.Do you think there is general confusion in the community about the difference between a Landscaper (landscape construction) and a Landscape Designer?(Required.)
21.Do you think Landscape Design is undervalued as a design profession in Australia?(Required.)
22.Is there anything else you would like us to know about your professional experience as a Landscape Designer?
Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. Your responses will be used directly in the LDI's formal submission to the ABS OSCA 2027 review. If you have questions, please contact Janine Mendel via email at janine@ldi.org.au or call 0414 865 747.