BUILDING A TAFE SYSTEM VICTORIANS CAN BE PROUD OF
There has never been a better time to train at a Victorian TAFE, as the Andrews Labor Government makes it easier than ever to get the highest quality industry training you need for the jobs you want, closer to home.
Since being elected to office the Labor Government has invested a record $3.2 billion to create a world-class system, following years of destruction at the hands of the Liberal Party.
For the past eight years our mission has been to restore the value and relevance of hands-on learning for school-leavers and for adults who are upskilling, retraining, or re-entering the workforce.
This includes investing $511.9 million for new and improved TAFE campuses across the state, including $40 million for a new Collingwood campus at Melbourne Polytechnic and $63 million for Bendigo TAFE’s award-winning city campus redevelopment.
We are making it easier than ever to attend a TAFE nearby, opening a new campus at Port of Sale in Gippsland and reopening campuses at Greensborough, Lilydale and Glenormiston.
Since being introduced in 2019, more than 115,000 students have taken advantage of our Free TAFE initiative, saving more $281 million in tuition fees while training in more than 60 courses linked to in-demand jobs.
More people are looking to TAFEs to build a great career with enrolments up by 13 per cent since 2015, while more than half of government-funded VET students are now turning to TAFE courses to complete their training.
But we know that improvement should be continuous. That is why we commissioned two major reviews – with findings released in 2020 and 2021 - to guide the major structural reform required to make Victoria’s vocational education and training the best it has ever been.
This has already led to major improvements in the sector, including the Senior Secondary Pathways reform, which is building a new, integrated senior secondary certificate by 2025 and the establishment of Apprenticeships Victoria, the Office of TAFE Coordination and Delivery and The Victorian Skills Authority.
These are key organisations which will drive job opportunities through apprenticeship creation and training, create a more effective, targeted funding model for TAFEs and support better alignment of training with the needs of industry – including the creation of the state’s most comprehensive annual skills plan.
Quote attributable to Minister for Training and Skills Gayle Tierney:
“We have rebuilt TAFE. We have restored its reputation. I am so proud of how far we have come.”
Quote attributable to Member for Melton Steve McGhie:
“Free TAFE is giving everyone access to life-changing training that leads to great jobs and great lives.
