Federal, state and territory Skills Ministers have agreed to a new approach to VET qualifications that better meets the needs of employers and learners in a changing labour market. This new approach focuses on building broader knowledge and qualifications with clear expected capabilities of graduates, while preserving specificity within units of competency for occupations and industries that need them. This supports transferability of skills and job mobility and builds more adaptable and resilient VET graduates.
The VSA and the Office of TAFE Coordination and Delivery are putting this new approach to qualifications into action through Skills Labs which are designing new skilling and training approaches across priority areas such as clean energy and construction. This includes the Clean Economy Skills Lab for Residential Building and Construction and the Circular Design and Manufacturing Skills Lab (Melbourne Polytechnic), and the Offshore Wind Skills Lab (TAFE Gippsland).
The VSA is also working with the Victorian TAFE Network to develop new VET qualifications in renewable energy. Projects include developing new courseware and training programs in electric vehicle (EV) charger installation (led by Bendigo Kangan Institute and South West TAFE); retrofitting homes for renewables and energy efficiency (led by Melbourne Polytechnic); and developing foundational knowledge and skills in renewable energy technologies for secondary school students (led by The Gordon Institute of TAFE).
The Victorian Clean Energy Required Training (CERT) Matrix and digital passport supports the clean energy industry and workers to understand and share the qualifications needed to move between solar, wind or battery projects.
Solar Victoria’s Electrification Training and Workforce Development program supports training to meet the growing demand for skills in home electrification including up-skilling plumbers to understand energy efficiency requirements and design and install energy efficient hot water systems.
Solar Victoria’s Electrification Training and Workforce Development program, the Pathways to Pre-Apprenticeships for First Nations program, the CERT Matrix, Clean Economy Skills Labs, and new VET qualifications in renewable energy progress the aims of the Victorian Government’s Clean Economy Workforce Development Strategy for 2023-2033.
Responding to learner and industry needs, the Victorian Government added seven new plumbing skill sets to the Free TAFE list to help qualified workers meet licensing or regulatory requirements.
Melbourne Polytechnic’s Future of Housing Construction Centre of Excellence welcomed its first group of students in 2025 and will help develop the construction workforce of the future and fast-track skills development in Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) and Industry 4.0, including prefabrication, 3D printing, and smart systems.
New training facilities are supporting the government’s commitment to deliver relevant, high-quality and accessible training in the care sector. Bendigo Kangan Institute’s Health and Community Centre of Excellence in Broadmeadows provides industry-leading laboratories, simulation suites, specialist equipment, and access to virtual reality technology. The Integrated Health and Technology Learning Hub at Swinburne University of Technology in Wantirna provides digital learning spaces and clinical teaching rooms designed to simulate real-world healthcare settings, equipping students with skills so they are confident and job-ready when they enter the workforce.
The VSA’s Local Skills Partnership Program delivers innovative capacity-building initiatives tailored to the needs of learners and industry across regional Victoria. New projects include The Gordon Institute of TAFE’s disability awareness and inclusion program for apprentices in the automotive industry (Barwon region) and Wodonga Institute of TAFE’s prototype of a ‘hub and spoke’ training model for transport and logistics courses (Ovens Murray region).
Updated