A NEW partnership between The Gordon TAFE and the state government will give more training opportunities to the coming early childhood education and care workforce in Geelong and elsewhere.<\/p>\n
The state government’s $2.9 million investment will recruit and train 140 workers in Geelong and Wyndham through The Gordon TAFE in collaboration with industry stakeholders.<\/p>\n
The Building Careers Through Smart Skilling project will deliver training, an industry “try-before-you-buy” program, mentorships and other wraparound supports, which will provide local jobseekers with pathways into TAFE courses and meaningful career opportunities while also addressing skills demands.<\/p>\n
As well as early childhood and care, the Building Careers Through Smart Skilling project will provide opportunities to Victorians looking to enter aged care, disability, hospitality, tourism, food and accommodation services.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur intensive learning program focuses on upskilling and cross-skilling the existing workforce while encouraging new workers from our refugee, CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) and Indigenous populations, women and youth to reskill,\u201d The Gordon Building Careers Through Smart Skilling project manager Megan Hortle said.<\/p>\n
Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney and Geelong MP Christine Couzens visited Happy Hippo Kindergarten and Childcare in Lovely Banks on Thursday last week to make the announcement.<\/p>\n
\u201cTAFE isn\u2019t just the engine room of the early childhood sector but industries right across the state \u2013 it provides great opportunities to jobseekers and is setting Victoria up with the skilled workers we need now and into the future,\u201d Ms Tierney said.<\/p>\n
The new training project supports the state government\u2019s $9 billion commitment to early childhood education and care, which includes initiatives to make kinder free, deliver a new year of universal Pre-Prep for 4-year-olds and establish 50 government operated childcare centres.<\/p>\n
Victorian TAFE and the state government\u2019s free TAFE initiative are already providing more skilled workers, with enrolments in early childhood education and care courses more than doubling since they were added to the list, meeting demand from the state government\u2019s free three-year old kinder initiative.<\/p>\n
Labor says it has made a record $3.5 billion investment to rebuild TAFE and support universities and higher education since 2014.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A NEW partnership between The Gordon TAFE and the state government will give more training opportunities to the coming early childhood education and care workforce in Geelong and elsewhere. The state government’s $2.9 million investment will recruit and train 140 workers in Geelong and Wyndham through The Gordon TAFE in collaboration with industry stakeholders. The […]<\/p>\n