The Gunnedah TAFE upgrade will go to tender in the coming months.
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The news from TAFE NSW comes after the announcement of $3.36 million in the state budget for the campus upgrade.
"The NSW Government has just delivered the 2019-20 Budget and is getting started on the $3 million TAFE NSW Gunnedah upgrade in the first quarter of the new financial year," TAFE NSW told the NVI.
"The project will go to tender soon and is expected to be awarded over the next few months."
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On Thursday, Tamworth MP Kevin Anderson said the upgrade would expand specialist trade workshops, provide new specialist Information and Communications Technology (ICT) equipment and refurbish generalist learning spaces to create adaptable workspaces.
"Fit-for-purpose classrooms and support services are key to meeting the individual needs of students within a fast-paced and evolving market," Mr Anderson said.
"The new facilities will also support the integration of Mobile Training Units, which have a proven capacity to meet community and employer need for courses, and deliver high quality, adaptable practical training where it is required.
"Apprentices in Gunnedah are now learning hands-on skills such as forging, welding, founding, polishing, structural steel erection and sheet metal work that will set them up for exciting engineering careers."
Mr Anderson said the local TAFE was offering Certificate III in Engineering - Fabrication Trade for the first time since 2011.
Gunnedah shire mayor Jamie Chaffey said TAFE will "play a major part in skilling Gunnedah well into the future".
"We have a tremendous facility that has served Gunnedah for a very long time that was under-utilised," Cr Chaffey said.
"These funds that have been made available are not to build new buildings. What they're meant to do is modify some of the existing buildings and provide for new equipment into some of these buildings that will enable Gunnedah to increase the amount of courses to ensure that we're training our youth and unemployed with the right skills to fill the job vacancies into the future."
Cr Chaffey said he was "hopeful" TAFE would roll out more apprenticeships in 2020 "that will be in line with the changes made to our TAFE facilities because of this funding announcement".
Gunnedah Chamber of Commerce president Stacey McAllan said the budget announcement was "fabulous news".
"The chamber will continue to support initiatives and state/federal funding that develop skills locally," she said.
"We look forward to working with TAFE to ensure the courses offered are contributing to filling skill gaps that have been identified in businesses."
