Shepparton locals will have access to more opportunities to get the skills they need to get a job thanks to $6.9 million for GOTAFE from the Andrews Labor Government.
Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney visited the Shepparton campus today to announce the funding from the Stronger TAFE Fund, part of Skills First, which will allow TAFEs to focus on what they do best – train students.
The funding will make sure GOTAFE has the resources needed to address industry skill gaps, deliver new innovative training and will help grow enrolments at the institute.
Through Skills First, the Labor Government is overhauling Victoria’s training and TAFE system, guaranteeing funding to secure the future of TAFE, and making sure Victorians have the right skills for the jobs of today and tomorrow.
Skills First builds on the Government’s investment in TAFE since 2014 – which has included new buildings, reopening closed campuses, rolling out the latest cutting edge equipment and restoring quality to the system.
The $6.9 million will also help GOTAFE’s campuses in Wangaratta, Benalla and Seymour.
Ms Tierney used the visit to tour GOTAFE’s Skills and Jobs Centre, one of 30 across Victoria. The centre has been involved in GOTAFE’s Youth Unemployment Program, set up to tackle high youth unemployment in Hume.
The program, funded through the $50 million TAFE Back to Work fund, supported more than 110 secondary students last year at risk of disengaging from education to develop a vocational pathway before finishing school.
In the last two years, GOTAFE has received $6.7 million from the TAFE Rescue Fund, $4.3 million from the TAFE Back to Work Fund and $1 million for Skills and Jobs Centers from the Labor Government.
Last month, a new united TAFE Victoria brand was launched to help TAFEs promote the hundreds of high-quality, industry-linked courses on offer at TAFE.
Victoria’s 12 TAFEs and four dual-sector universities will remain individual institutions, but the new brand gives them a strong collective voice as the centre of the government-funded training system. A new website features every TAFE course offered by TAFEs and dual-sector universities in Victoria.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney
“The Andrews Labor Government will always support TAFE, that’s why we’ve created the Stronger TAFE Fund.”
“Transforming the training and TAFE sector after four years of cuts is no easy feat. That’s why we’re investing record amounts in TAFEs, including GOTAFE, to make sure they’re up to the task.”
Quotes attributable to Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes
“We’re making sure GOTAFE is able to better align training to the skills people need to get the jobs they want in our region that will meet local industry needs.”
“I’m proud to be a part of a government that’s making our TAFEs stronger than ever. Locals right across our electorate deserve access to the best training possible and this extra funding will make sure they have that.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020