The Establishment Board of the new Institute of Skills and Technology was announced and will be based in Christchurch. The first Board meeting will be on 6 September. The Director of the Establishment Unit, Murray Strong, has been appointed and the Unit will be staffing up over the coming months.

Last week officials met with ITO chief executives, where they discussed how industry coverage might be shaped across four to seven workforce development councils. The workshop was led by TEC and Ministry of Education officials. It kicked off the start of the design and development phase of setting up the councils. 

“We are keen to visit and talk with industry training organisations and their employer groups as part of this process,” said TEC Deputy Chief Executive Gillian Dudgeon. 

“Industry needs to take strong ownership in the councils and they are vital to the success of the Reform of Vocational Education.”

These are very early stage discussions, and officials will be engaging with wider industry representatives as they firm up options for workforce development council coverage. 

Work is also being undertaken on the unified funding system to identify the membership of a Funding Reference Group.

In mid-August, Minister Hipkins announced a Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) for the primary sector. Another CoVE for the construction sector was announced shortly after.

On 16 August, Minister Hipkins called for nominations for Taumata Aronui, the group that will help develop tertiary education from Māori community and employer perspectives. Please see this press release on the Beehive’s website. The Government is looking for between eight and 10 people with a mix of skills and experience. Nominations are due by 6 September, and the intention is to have the Group appointed later in the year.