A $2.9 million refurbishment project is set to change the face of Warragul’s TAFE Gippsland campus.
Works will be underway this month to demolish the eastern section of the Queen St building to make way for a major redevelopment and expansion.
The redevelopment will lead to an expanded health sector training area and a new facilities enabling the campus to offer early childhood training courses.
TAFE Gippsland chief executive officer Grant Radford said staff and students were the big winners in the multi-million dollar refurbishment.
With $2.9 million additional funding support from the state government’s TAFE asset maintenance fund announced in September, the major upgrade is set to begin this month.
Mr Radford said the works would deliver significant improvements to the Queen St campus.
“The upgrade to our Warragul campus will deliver a better student experience in fit-for-purpose facilities and will ensure TAFE Gippsland can cater for growth in demand for specific vocational and educational training courses in the Warragul and Drouin peri-urban growth corridor.
“Specifically, the upgrade will deliver new high quality specialist training spaces to accommodate growth in courses such as nursing and early childhood education, and it will add to existing general-purpose training spaces, along with refurbished staff accommodation and a new campus entrance.”
Mr Radford said the refurbishment will assist TAFE Gippsland in attracting new students and in delivering on the local training needs of existing students in the Baw Baw Shire region.
Works will begin at the eastern end of the campus where the existing building will be demolished.
The second level section will be extended east to provide expanded and improved facilities for health sector training including nursing and aged care.
On the ground level, a refurbishment of the western wing will enable facilities to be developed that will allow new early childhood courses.
Mr Radford said the early childhood education and care course would be a new offering in response to increased demand for childhood services.
The overall aim of the redevelopment will be to create open, flexible learning spaces and improved student and staff amenities.
Mr Radford said he anticipated a significant increase in student numbers once the redevelopment was completed.
“We are struggling for space for staff at the moment. We have been at capacity and overflowing for a while,” he said.
Mr Radford said the expansion ultimately planned for long term growth of the campus. “We will be maximising our footprint to cater for future growth.”
The Queen St campus officially opened in 1997.
The works will be undertaken in stages to ensure the campus continues to operate for students. It is expected the project will be completed by the end of next year.