Overview and Background

The WA Horticulture and Environmental Science Skills Centre is Challenger TAFE's training, consulting and research centre for the primary industries, allied industries (irrigation, crop protection, industrial pesticide application, fertiliser, conservation earthworks etc) and sustainable resource management/use sectors. It has membership of the National Centre for Sustainability and offers new capabilities in sustainable industry and community development.

The Centre delivers over half a million hours of publicly resourced skilling, up-skilling and re-skilling to WA workers/business operators in the sectors mentioned above and offers the largest and most diverse primary industries vocational portfolio in WA and the capacity to deliver to the highest levels of primary industries, natural resource management and irrigation training packages. Its also has an expanding purchaser-provider role to corporations, peak bodies, community organisations, individual and international students.

The Centre also delivers environmental science and applied science programs that are highly synergistic with the primary industries and natural resource management skills areas.

We work closely with industry, embedding trainers in businesses and have co-trained several thousand people in over 200 WA locations in conjunction with rural business organisations and allied industry peak bodies. With the introduction of the national irrigation qualifications and the addition of the Water Industry Operations package to our portfolio, the Centre is expanding in all facets of training in the conservative use of water.

A key function of the Centre is maintaining an overview of current trends and developments that have an impact on industry and community skill needs. We collaborate in an dynamic way with many industry peak bodies, individual businesses, community groups, institutions, researchers, national and international agencies to develop training solutions that meet their ongoing needs.

Our staff are highly-qualified and provide quality training delivery.

Our Point of Difference

Over a quarter of Challenger TAFE’s 1300 apprentices and trainees are managed by the WA Horticulture & Environmental Science Skills Centre. This includes on-site and off-site delivery and assessment, on-line and block training for both regional and city trainees and other flexible delivery arrangements, including the development of customised training program outlines that meet industry and individual employer needs.

As an Skills Training Centre, we are responsive to industry's demands to increase on-the-job training and have developed and maintained processes of academic and administrative data management and reporting for the trainee/apprentice, his/her employer/host employer(s)/school, the College, the State and Federal training agencies.

We have been reactive to the need for skills gap analysis, gap training and skills recognition from a wide range of organisations and individuals and this is now the sole business of an increasingly larger segment of our more specialised personnel.

We are also in the business of delivering skills to meet emerging industry and community needs.

We were the first WA TAFE to offer the complete Certificate in Pest Management, Environmental Management Systems, higher level qualifications and higher level up-skilling short courses in horticulture, floristry, natural resource management, the new irrigation qualifications, pesticide safety, industry-specific OHS and specialised equipment programs, water-use efficiencies in irrigation, on-line training in horticulture, conservation and land management, tree conservation, bushland weed control, organic options and many more.

We have delivered special horticultural programs for the intellectually and physically challenged and timetable programs to allow access to study for single parents and Indigenous Australians. We train extensively and very successfully in prisons in anti-recidivism traineeships and related courses.

We partner with other Colleges to deliver a number of their regional programs thus increasing local training options in other areas of the State. We also collaborate with Challenger TAFE's WA Centre for Leadership, Community and Cultural Development to deliver work skills in combination with leadership/governance skills to individuals with special needs and with community organisations to augment both of our capacities to meet WA's sustainability needs. Many of our students develop their skills in project-based employment and with host employers where businesses and communities directly benefit from project outcomes.

Finally, our staff conducts research of immediate value to WA (current programs include wastewater reuse and conservative water use), support other agency research, act as change agents in new technology transfer and provide specialised information directly to our client stakeholders.

Demographics

The WA Horticulture & Environmental Science Skills Centre’s main facilities are located at Challenger TAFE's Murdoch Campus, with training also conducted at the College's Fremantle, Rockingham and Peel Campuses. Training in a wide area of studies is provided on-site at various external industrial and other institutional sites.

Industry Training Centre & Training Programs

The Centre’s training services are closely-aligned with industry requirements via training programs in Certificate, Diploma and Advanced Diploma levels across a wide range of areas:

• Horticulture Production
• Horticulture Amenity
• Land Management
• Conservation
• Irrigation
• Environmental Science
• Applied Science
• Floristry
• Arboriculture
• Agriculture
• Water Operations
• Sports & Amenity Turf
• Pesticide Application
• Animal Care

Training Environment

The WA Horticulture & Environmental Science Skills Centre's courses are delivered in some of the most comprehensive training facilities in Western Australia which include:

• Training rooms, workshops, testing laboratories and science laboratories equipped with up-to-date electronic and industrial technology.
• Environmental monitoring equipment.  
• Computer rooms with pentium computers and software loaded with the latest software programs relevant to the industry.
• Air-conditioned class rooms with white boards and overhead projectors.
• Comprehensive Library facility.
• Student Services division offering a wide range of student support services and amenities.
• Additional state-of-the-art facilities specifically for horticulture study programs including glasshouses with the latest technology, bushland and sports grounds for learning and research and a commercial-size, fully accredited nursery.

All courses are delivered by qualified, highly-experienced lecturing staff.

Many of our learners can complete or partly complete their study on-the-job or in a virtual study environment through flexible and on-line programs designed by Centre Academic Staff.

Industry Expertise & Affiliation

The Centre is committed to fostering local and regional partnerships and alliances. Consultancies are often sought for our services by foreign governments, local government agencies, corporations and companies. The Centre has active research alliances and partnerships, examples of these include:

• Installation of a subsidiary Sustainable Industry and Community Centre of Specialisation at Mandurah.
• The Department of Justice, improving learning in youth at educational risk.
• Nursery Industry Accreditation Scheme Australia
• Turf & Landscaping Industry Association of Western Australia

Our industry clients regularly need to re-skill and up-skill their employees and we work collaboratively to provide short course programs either on-the-job or off-the-job to fulfil these needs. Examples include occupational health and safety training, pesticide application training, conservative irrigation technology, specialised equipment training and many others.

International Capability

The WA Horticulture & Environmental Science Skills Centre collaborates with many institutions and agencies including international agencies and has established an international reputation for our expertise and flexibility in delivering programs, including a range of short courses for the various divisions within the industry.

There is now a growing number of students from around the world who are choosing to study with the Centre. Overseas training agents also visit our campus regularly and direct consultation with them has enabled us to expand our training program to the international market. We currently offer training in Horticulture, Environmental Science, Applied Science, Conservation & Land Management and have recently added Irrigation to our international training portfolio.

An example of our off-shore international training includes Horticultural training in the South Pacific Islands.

Key Staff Contacts

Kerry Bowe, Centre Director

Tel. (+61 8) 9229 8406; Fax. (+61 8) 9310 6264
Email: kerry.bowe@challengertafe.wa.edu.au

Steve Dargie, Program Manager Primary Industries

Tel. (+61 8) 9229 8433; Fax. (+61 8) 9310 0731
Email: steve.dargie@challengertafe.wa.edu.au

Pascaline Owers,  Program Manager Sustainable Development

Tel. (+61 8) 9229 8403; Fax. (+61 8) 9310 6264 
Email: pascaline.owers@challengertafe.wa.edu.au

Hours of Business

During the year Challenger TAFE's Murdoch Campus is open 8am-5pm weekdays except Fridays which are 8am-4.30pm. At special times of the year such as Open Days or enrolments opening times will vary. If you are unsure of what time to visit the Campus please call 9229 9555. The Campus is only 500 metres from the Murdoch Train Station. For additional directions and information click on the Contacts and Campuses link above.