Member for Clarence and Parliamentary Secretary for the North Coast, Chris Gulaptis has commended the North Coast TAFE NSW training program for driving a range of opportunities for civil construction students as part of the Pacific Highway upgrades. “The North Coast TAFE has been delivering high-quality education services to students across the breadth of the North Coast for a number of years,” Mr Gulaptis said. “To add to their running success the North Coast TAFE has tailored an agile training model that delivers job-ready graduates to employers as part of the $5 billion infrastructure project currently underway. “Alike the mobile facility that’s been created in the Clarence Valley, training delivery is very close to the source of the jobs and in close partnership with the civil construction industry, so we can ensure we’re delivering graduates with the skills they need to get a job.” Minister for Skills and Regional Development John Barilaro said that the training is mobile so that it can maximise responsiveness to industry needs. “This mobile training is designed to follow the work as the project progresses, enabling students to get frontline training so they are better prepared to join the skilled workforce,” Mr Barilaro said. “One of the other great benefits of this TAFE NSW initiative is that we’re able to bring the training to our regional towns. “By making it accessible to trainees in regional areas we’re creating real pathways into work creating the skilled workforce of the future.” Since mid-2014, more than 800 trainees have completed courses in Civil Construction, Surface Extraction, and Civil Construction Supervision and Operation with numbers expected to increase as the Woolgoolga to Ballina Pacific Highway project continues. The Civil Construction program is currently ’live’ on sites in the Clarence and Richmond Valleys in addition to the Tweed. Plans are currently underway to expand the program as the demand grows in NSW and interstate.