10 June 2026

Changes to participant status for deferred and withdrawn participants who have completed training

New feature Data update Production release

We’ve updated how participant_status is set for deferred and withdrawn participants in GET participant responses.

What’s changed

Deferred and withdrawn participants will now have a participant_status of left or leaving (if the finished_on date is in the future) in API responses.

Previously, deferred or withdrawn participants who had completed training would return a participant_status of active, even if they were deferred or withdrawn.

Why we’ve made this change

The previous behaviour could result in participants appearing to move from left back to active. This could cause confusion for providers and delivery partners.

This change ensures that withdrawal and deferral states are consistently reflected, without requiring additional cross-referencing with other attributes.

What you need to do

No action is required. However, you should:

  • expect deferred and withdrawn participants to always return participant_status: left
  • ensure your systems do not rely on participant_status being active for completed participants who have since been withdrawn or deferred