Through the National Skills Agreement, the Australian Government has partnered with states and territories to establish nationally networked TAFE Centres of Excellence to help deliver a skilled workforce for strategically important industries to meet national challenges.
TAFE Centres of Excellence will increase collaboration between TAFEs, through partnerships with employers, unions, universities and other stakeholders, and deliver the skills people need for good, secure work and careers.
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What is a TAFE Centre of Excellence?
The Australian Government is investing up to $325 million over five years, with matched funding from states and territories, to establish nationally networked TAFE Centres of Excellence. The TAFE Centres of Excellence will strengthen capability and capacity of the VET system to provide high-quality and responsive skills training for critical and emerging industries, including the transformation to a net zero economy, sustaining essential care and support services, ensuring our digital and technological capability, and sovereign capability and food security.
The TAFE Centres of Excellence will position TAFEs as the foundation for innovation across the VET sector through nationally consistent, world-class teaching and learning. Partnerships between the TAFE Centres of Excellence and universities will strengthen connections across the tertiary sector, providing support for students of all ages to gain the skills and knowledge needed to obtain good, secure jobs that allow them to contribute meaningfully to businesses and the broader Australian labour market.
The Australian Government has partnered with the following states and territories on TAFE Centres of Excellence:
| TAFE Centre of Excellence | Description |
|---|---|
| Electric Vehicle Centre of Excellence, Fyshwick, ACT | The Electric Vehicle Centre of Excellence is partnering with industry and universities to support growth in the electric vehicle industry across Australia. The Electric Vehicle Centre of Excellence, located at the Canberra Institute of Technology’s Fyshwick campus, will specialise in innovative training for heavy hydrogen electric vehicles, retrofitting of vehicles, battery repurposing and charging installation, in addition to the broader development of safety training for a range of occupations with touch points across the electric vehicle industry. The Electric Vehicle Centre of Excellence will receive $9.66 million from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement and $4.78 million in additional funding through the Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. For more information on this initiative, visit the Canberra Institute of Technology website. |
| Clean Energy Skills National Centre of Excellence, state-wide, WA | The Clean Energy Skills National Centre of Excellence will provide world-class training across the WA TAFE network to grow Australia’s clean energy skills and workforce capacity. The Clean Energy Skills National Centre of Excellence, located across the network of WA TAFE colleges and other training institutes, will specialise in the delivery of innovative training in clean energy technologies including solar, wind, hydrogen, and batteries, to feed into the grid to help create a Future Made in Australia. The Clean Energy Skills National Centre of Excellence will receive $32.75 million from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement and $5.03 million in additional funding through the Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. For more information on this initiative, visit the Jobs and Skills WA website. |
| TAFE Centre of Excellence – Health Care and Support, Cairns, Qld | The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Health Care and Support will deliver critical higher-level skills training to grow and sustain Australia’s essential care and support services. The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Health Care and Support, located at the TAFE Queensland Cairns campus, will strengthen capability and capacity for the aged care, disability support, and mental health care sectors, and will explore new pathways in nursing, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, and health leadership. The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Health Care and Support will receive $15 million from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement and $5 million in additional funding through the Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. For more information on this initiative, visit the TAFE Queensland website. |
| Early Childhood Education and Care Centre of Excellence, Adelaide, SA | The TAFE SA Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care is partnering with industry and universities to train early childcare workers for essential care services. The TAFE SA Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care, located at the TAFE SA Adelaide City West campus, will lift the skills and capability of early childcare workers for essential care services on a national scale, through sharing of high-quality training products and industry demonstration to increase access to early childhood education and care across Australia. The TAFE SA Centre of Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Care will receive $11.5 million from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement and $5 million in additional funding through the Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. |
| TAFE NSW – Western Sydney Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, Wetherill Park, NSW | The Western Sydney Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence aims to equip the future workforce with the skills needed to support Australia’s manufacturing sovereign capability and food security. The Western Sydney Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, located at the TAFE NSW Wetherill Park campus, will provide targeted training for advanced manufacturing and sovereign capability, food and beverage manufacturing, pharmaceutical manufacturing and will support greater integration of digital technology. The Western Sydney Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence will receive approx. $27m from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement. For more information on this initiative, visit the TAFE NSW website. |
| TAFE Centre of Excellence – Clean Energy (Batteries), Acacia Ridge, QLD | The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Clean Energy (Batteries) will drive growth in the clean energy sector by improving and innovating training for clean energy battery technologies across Australia. The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Clean Energy (Batteries), located at the TAFE Qld Acacia Ridge campus, will target training to renewable energy batteries, intermittent renewable energy source storage, grid connectivity, network embedded storage at large and small scales, and electric vehicles for existing and emerging workforces. The TAFE Centre of Excellence – Clean Energy (Batteries) will receive $10m from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement. For more information on this initiative, visit the TAFE Queensland website |
| TAFE NSW Hunter Net Zero Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, TAFE NSW Tighes Hill campus, NSW | The Hunter Net Zero Manufacturing Centre of Excellence is partnering with industry and universities to support the national transition to clean energy. The Hunter Net Zero Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, located at the TAFE NSW Tighes Hill campus, will provide high-quality training products to support the national transition of traditional mining, energy and manufacturing industries into cleaner, renewable energy sources. The Hunter Net Zero Manufacturing Centre of Excellence will receive approx. $28.1m from the Commonwealth through the National Skills Agreement and $5.3m in additional funding through the Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. For more information on this initiative, visit the TAFE NSW website. |
Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence
To support the release of Working Future: The Australian Government’s White Paper on Jobs and Opportunities, the Australian Government has announced up to six nationally networked TAFE Centres of Excellence established under the NSA will receive additional funding to fast-track in the priority areas of transition to net zero, providing essential care and support services, and building digital skills capability. A total of $41.2 million in additional funding over five years is available to support this measure. Of that:
- States will be able to apply for $31.6 million to fast-track up to six TAFE Centres of Excellence. This funding is in addition to the funding available through the NSA.
- A further $9.6 million will support the enabling work for higher and degree apprenticeships.
The Department is currently working with states and territories on their TAFE Centre of Excellence and Turbocharging applications.
National TAFE Network
The Australian Government, in partnership with the states and territories, is designing a National TAFE Network to foster collaboration between TAFEs to develop curriculum resources, improve the quality of teaching and learning practice, and enhance the status of TAFE. The National TAFE Network will facilitate the sharing of innovation and best practice from TAFE Centres of Excellence with TAFEs across Australia.
The National TAFE Network:
- supports the TAFE workforce and education practice through communities of practice;
- develops curriculum and course materials and share these among TAFEs and public training providers;
- pilots new or innovative approaches in teaching and learning practices; and
- provides a mechanism for Jobs and Skills Councils, TAFE Centres of Excellence and others to engage with TAFEs and public training providers.