Trades take off

Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott with Warwick State High School principal Cheryl Bullion and school leaders inside the new Warwick trade training centre.

By ALENA HIGGINS

AFTER four long years of dreaming, planning and consulting, Warwick State High School has officially unveiled its new trade training centre.
The state-of-the-art facility on the corner of Victoria and Guy streets will offer local state secondary students qualifications in agriculture, engineering and manufacturing – skills that are currently in short supply.
Maranoa MP Bruce Scott, who was on hand to cut the red ribbon last Thursday, said Warwick was well-positioned to capitalise on the growth of agricultural export markets and Asian trade agreements, which is why local manual training facilities were needed.
“I think for a period in our history we forgot about technical training and thought everyone must have a university degree,” Maranoa MP Bruce Scott said.
“While that is important, trades are going to be fundamental to us in our communities if we are to make the most into the future.”
Students from Warwick High, Clifton State High School, Killarney State School and Allora State School will have access to the expansive $3.5 million facility, which includes a separate science laboratory building to support food production.
Mr Scott, who was representing parliamentary secretary to the Minister for Education, Senator Scott Ryan at the opening ceremony, said by “training your own” you had a better chance of retaining them.
“(The entire school community) thought about Warwick’s future needs, worked out what was best for the young people of the area, and devised a plan that makes a tangible difference,” he said.
The school is working closely with TAFE to put the finishing touches on the certificate one and two programs with students expected to be able to get their hands dirty in thenewly-constructed industrial workshop by the start of next year.
Head of Warwick High’s technology department Wayne Hoger said it was a “fantastic opportunity” to have modern, industry standard equipment at their disposal, given that some of the manual arts facilities currently in use date back to the old Warwick College days.
He said at this stage TAFE lecturers would convene the classes, but staff members could step in to deliver the modules if TAFE was unable to.“Initially we’re going to take students that are engaged in agricultural programs here and expose them to the kinds of maintenance programs they need for small engines, a bit of welding, a bit of sheetmetal fabrication those sorts of things that are all useful in a farming or agriculture sense,” Mr Hoger said.
General manager of TAFE Queensland South West, Trevor Schwenke said TAFE Queensland was committed to supporting the provision of school-based trade training.
“We are currently in discussions with Warwick State High School to determine how we can support them in the effective use of their new facility,” Mr Schwenke said.
Warwick State High principal Cheryl Bullion thanked all those who played a part in the journey and singled out deputy principal Janelle Robb for her tenacity in getting the federally-funded project up and running.