The NSW Government is jeopardising the future of students by refusing to name the vocational education providers who have had their funding suspended after misconduct and quality control failures.
Local state MP Greg Warren and Labor’s spokesperson on skills Prue Car say “the government’s disdain for transparency has placed the thousands of students enrolling in new vocational education courses at risk of signing up to a course with a potentially dodgy provider’’.
They say that despite the potential for these students to suffer heartache and stress at the hands of failed providers, the government is refusing to name the VET providers who have had their funding suspended and are under investigation.
“Students in Campbelltown looking to get a head start in life need to be encouraged, not made to be targets for greedy private operators,’’ says Mr Warren.
“If the government was serious about vocational education it would end its war on TAFE and restore proper funding to the public educator.
“This information has the power to protect the Campbelltown community from the potential heartache and stress that comes from signing up with dodgy providers.
“Premier Berejiklian should be happy to offer it to the public.”
Ms Car echoed the sentiments expressed by Mr Warren.
“TAFE has been gutted and left to survive on the smell of an oily rag yet private providers that have been found to have lied about enrolments or attempted to dupe the system are being protected,’’ Ms Car said.
The refusal to name the providers comes after the government fought against a NSW Labor campaign to reveal the names and the impact failed providers were having on students in NSW.
Labor says its campaign of freedom of information requests and courtroom battles in the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) finally forced the Government to reveal a list of the 11 terminated providers and the courses that were being targeted, but was unable to force the release of the suspended providers.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“The investigation uncovered that more than 250 students in Campbeltown have already been devastated by terminated or suspended providers; a number that will balloon with more students unknowingly signing onto suspended providers,’’ Mr Warren and Ms Car said.[/social_quote]
“The Government’s Smart and Skilled program offers funding to private vocational education providers offering Certificates and Diplomas in various trades and skills.
“The program has also meant a gross reduction in funding for public vocational education provider TAFE, forcing course prices to climb, student enrolments to plummet and thousands of teachers and support staff to lose their jobs.’’
NSW opposition leader Luke Foley has announced Labor’s Private Provider Investigation Unit policy to help weed out shonky providers during his budget reply speech. The investigation unit would investigate dodgy training providers and ensure that taxpayer money is only given to reputable providers.
