The heart of Perth city's business district is set to be transformed into a university hub when Edith Cowan University's performing arts and technology college moves from the current Mount Lawley campus to a brand new site located above the bus port and adjacent to Yagan Square under a $695m plan announced by the state government on Sunday 20th September.

The WA Academy of Performing Arts is slated to move to the state-of-the-art premises, with a launch target of 2025. The campus is envisioned to host 9,200 students from day one, growing to 11,000 by 2030. With many details yet to be announced, FutureNow understands that ECU's WA Screen Academy will also move to the new campus.

The project forms the centerpiece of the Perth City Deal, a $1.5b program designed to attract government and private investment back into the city.

Read about the new ECU campus
Read about the Perth City Deal
Find more details in this Business News article

Ten thousand tourism vouchers worth $100 each have been made available to local tourists as part of the 'A million reasons to Wander out Yonder' campaign to support Western Australia's tour and experience businesses. Western Australians will have the option of making a half-price saving on a $200 activity, or choosing to get a $100 discount off a higher-value or 'bucket list' experience through a $100 discount when spending at least $100 on tours or experiences, including winery tours, fishing charters, Aboriginal cultural tours, diving experiences, or food tours. Participating visitor centres will also help people to bundle several tours and experiences.
Vouchers will be available online from 10.00 am Monday, 21st September 2020. 
To read the full media statement, please click here. 

Training enrolments in 34 priority courses have increased by more than 20 per cent since the start of the year, following TAFE course fee reductions. There has been a total of 27,700 enrolments in priority courses, for which TAFE fees were reduced by up to 50 per cent from 1st January 2020. This includes an additional 4,600 local students who have enrolled into these courses. The Certificate III in Hospitality has been one of the more popular courses with approximately 1,400 enrolments.
 
In July of this year, as part of the WA Recovery Plan, fees were reduced for an additional 39 TAFE courses and 15 fee-free TAFE short courses were announced. There have been 3,150 enrolments in these courses since July.
For more information on Lower fees, local skills and a full list of half price courses visit http://www.jobsandskills.wa.gov.au or contact your local Jobs and Skills Centre on 13 64 64.
To read the full media statement, please click here. 

Help our regional tourism and hospitality operators by working in the regions.  A WA Government campaign to support regional farmers and the broader tourism sector.
 
Tourism WA page: About the State-Wide Campaign 
Media Statement: Accommodation and travel support incentives 
Information for Employers and Work and Wander out Yonder toolkit 
Studium page: More info and Searchable Employee Database 

Cisco, Optus, and TAFE Directors Australia (TDA) have called for urgent action to train the ‘blue tech’ workforce they argue is needed for the Australian IT industry of the near future. The claims are made in a recent submission to the federal Government which makes two recommendations:

• The Australian Government to provide funding to assess the size of the blue tech market (i.e. technology-intensive jobs requiring sub-degree level qualifications) down to the individual job role, so TAFEs can more quickly prepare and respond to the anticipated demand. It will be critical to understand the opportunity this presents for the re-employment of Australians within industries affected by COVID-19. 

• The Australian Government to provide funding for the development and delivery of one or two micro-credentials for digital skills to help in the re-skilling and up-skilling effort as part of a wider productivity drive that will support the recovery of existing industries and the support of new industries as we move into the recovery phase.

Read the full submission here

The Australian Government will extend the human biosecurity emergency period under the Biosecurity Act 2015 by an additional three months. The emergency period, which has been in place since 18 March 2020, will now be in place until 17 December 2020. The order encompasses restrictions on overseas travel, the entry of cruise ships into Australia, the supply and sale of certain essential goods and retail stores at international airports. The Hon Greg Hunt MO, Minister for Health media release.

The 2020 National Sports Census is being conducted by the Australian Sports Professional Association.  It is designed to capture a response from those working in Australian sport. 

It doesn't matter if you work for a state, territory or national sporting organisation, sports business, council, industry body, or other organisation within Australian sport - the Census will capture everyone's sentiment. This year is particularly important to understand the impact of COVID-19.

For information about the census
Complete the census

The Department of Training and Workforce Development (DTWD) has recently updated the Apprenticeship and Traineeship Policy.  The policy provides information for stakeholders involved in regulated apprenticeships and traineeships in Western Australia. 

The policy has undergone edits to include current developments, such as the arrangements for apprenticeship and traineeship training for elite athletes and reference to the Department's guide to school-based apprenticeships and traineeships.

To read more, visit DTWD's policy page
Download the policy.