NEW England Institute of TAFE relieving director John Michael has slammed claims of a withdrawal of TAFE services from the region.
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Responding to comments made by union officials, who raised concerns campuses could be closed following a sweeping restructure of the TAFE system announced on Wednesday, Mr Michael said the changes were flexible, innovative and responsive, and would give the institute a “clear direction” for the future.
“TAFE NSW has already announced, and has been working closely with the Liverpool Plains Shire Council to develop a new, state-of-the-art Connected Learning Centre in the heart of Quirindi,” the acting director said.
“Claims made by the NSW Teachers Federation that TAFE NSW is withdrawing from the community
are incorrect. Our second-semester campaign has commenced andall campuses are accepting enrolments for a number courses.
“We are proud to be able to support smaller regional communities and we are working hard with the community and local government representatives to provide relevant and quality training for the jobs of the future.”
Earlier this week Kathy Nicholson, the locally based TAFE organiser for the NSW Teachers Federation, had expressed her disappointment at the restructure.
“This is yet another major disruption and you have to wonder, will we survive it?” she said.
“It won’t be a seamless process; it will have an impact ... (and) our capacity to work with students to grow the skills and development for the good of this state is placed in jeopardy yet again.”
She said the teachers federation feared the scale of job losses and the prospect of campus closures, particularly in smaller areas.
Under the changes, the 10 NSW institutes, which include TAFE New England, will be merged into a single, multi-campus entity, and a series of new flexible learning centres will be opened from next year to provide students with access to TAFE training and teaching across the network.