The Western Australian government will focus on growing the number of trainees and apprentices in regional areas of the state.
Minister for Education and Training, Sue Ellery, announced that the VET Regional Partnerships Program will grow links between all stakeholders in the sector to train workers with the skills industry requires. The program is part of a wider initiative to expand employment in the regions.
“These regional partnerships support the State Government’s plan to increase the number of jobs in regional WA by 30,000,” said Ellery.
The partnership brings together regional TAFEs, the wider education sector, government, and industry. Through collaborative engagement and forward planning, the program will provide a platform for regional industries to identify the skills they need to fill jobs, and utilise the local community to provide these skills.
Central Regional TAFE, which spans the Mid-West, Goldfields, and Wheatbelt regions will deliver apprenticeship and training programs in farm machinery manufacturing. Electrotechnology training will be delivered in the South-West through South Regional TAFE and South Metropolitan TAFE.
Resources and programming tools will be shared across the entire TAFE network and TAFE sites in Broome, Karratha, Rockingham, and Bunbury will receive upgrades.
According to Ellery, the program focusses on targeted needs and skills.
“This program is a great example of how we are ensuring regional TAFEs are delivering training opportunities that align with future job growth.”
In addition to the new Regional Partnerships Program, training in vocational careers has received $1.53 in funding through the Community Resource Centres network. As Minister for Regional Development, Alannah MacTiernane, the program targets those skills most in demand.
“The flexibility of the Regional Traineeship Program encourages employers and trainees to move away from the traditional business traineeships and encourages traineeships in vocations that better suit the needs of our regional communities,” she said.
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