Edition 47, July 2007

Skill Store services open in north west Melbourne

A new Skill Store service, operating from 1 June 2007, will assist people living in Melbourne's northwest to have their existing skills recognised and to explore the range of vocational education and training options available to them.

The region will be serviced by four permanent facilities at Footscray, Preston, Meadow Heights and Broadmeadows, with a mobile facility operating at shopping centres, libraries, community centres, and workplaces.

Skill Stores are a Victorian government initiative offering wider access to information about skills, trades and training, with potential clients including young people, job seekers, migrants and mature workers re-entering the workforce. Clients have access to personal face-to-face advice regarding training choices and advancing or changing their careers. Information and advice is also available on linking skills to jobs and identifying training pathways in the vocational education and training system.

An important part of the service is recognition of prior learning with referrals for assessments made to specific registered training organisations, and carried out by qualified staff. It is expected that some 1600 recognition of prior learning assessments will be conducted annually.

The services are being provided by a consortium led by Vocational Education and Training Assessment Services with partners including Victoria University, Kangan Batman TAFE, Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE, Apprenticeships Plus, Meadow Heights Learning Shop and the Community Services and Health Industry Training Board.

Suitably experienced staff will assess an individual client's current skills and experience so that these can be formally recognised before further training and employment options are considered.

Four other Skill Stores will be established during 2007 at east Melbourne, south east Melbourne, Gippsland and Hume.

For more information visit www.education.vic.gov.au (Select 'Senior Secondary & Youth Transitions' > 'Careers & Transitions' > 'Skill stores')

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