Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery and Disability Services Minister Stephen Dawson today opened the brand new National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Training Centre at North Regional TAFE's Broome campus.
The state-of-the-art facility includes a dedicated teaching space and four simulated in-home care environments, with a customised bedroom, bathroom, kitchenette and living room to reflect a client's home.
The centre also includes a bedroom and ensuite bathroom that replicates hospitals and aged care facilities to ensure students can achieve the competencies required for NDIS-related training.
Built at a cost of $955,000, the centre was designed to cater for the region's increase in demand for skilled aged care and disability workers.
The new facility will support the delivery of half price courses as part of the State Government's Lower Fees, Local Skills initiative. Initially launched in January, the initiative halved the cost of training for 34 high priority qualifications. In July, the program was expanded to include an additional 39 courses reduced by up to 72 per cent to align with the State's immediate economic needs following COVID-19.
The NDIS Training Centre will deliver the following half price courses:
- Certificate III in Individual Support - Ageing
- Disability and Home and Community Care
- Certificate II - Diploma of Community Services and the Certificate IV in Ageing Support
In addition, the facility will be used for the delivery of the new Provide Individual Support skill set which provides participants with critical skills for jobs in aged care and disability support.
North Regional TAFE has already had more than 25 applications for the Provide Individual Support skill set. The course is free to students under 25 years old, and unemployed jobseekers.
Designed by local firm Engawa Architects and constructed by Broome Builders, only local subcontractors were engaged to work on the project.
As stated by Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery:
"This state-of-the-art centre will provide students with the very best learning environment as they train for jobs to meet local workforce needs.
"Skilled workers across a range of trades and occupations will be in high demand as the economy recovers, and an investment in training is an investment in the future.
"It's fantastic to see local architects, builders and subcontractors involved and the local economy boosted by the jobs this project generated."
As stated by Disability Services Minister Stephen Dawson:
"The McGowan Government is committed to making the NDIS work for Western Australians and to ensuring people with disability can enjoy high-quality services now and into the future.
"Over the next five years, the health care and social assistance industry is forecast to have the largest employment growth of all industries in Western Australia, with the number of disability and aged care workers needing to double to meet demand.
"The opening of this training facility will help the Kimberley meet this demand and also brings us one step closer to fostering an inclusive society."
