By Matthew Sims
Casey Council and Federation University Australia have renewed their partnership via a memorandum of understanding (MoU), following an initial partnership signed between the council and the university in 2020.
Expiring on 31 December 2024, the partnership would focus on developing a shared voice for the Berwick Health and Education Precinct, with the council and the university planning to work with partners and key stakeholders to help realise the vision of the precinct as a hub of knowledge, technology, health, education, research and employment for Melbourne’s south east.
The council and the university would also collaborate on projects and initiatives which contribute to solutions for environmental issues, innovative and responsive health and wellbeing services and resilience in current strategic and emerging industry sectors for a stronger local economy.
The partnership would also involve the council and the university working with stakeholders to identify gaps in knowledge and skills, come up with strategies to develop a skilled workforce in the region and promote local employment.
Casey Council chair administrator Noelene Duff PSM said the council was “pleased” to renew the partnership.
“We particularly look forward to working closely with the university and our stakeholders to enable upskilling, skill alignment and increased employment pathways for Casey residents,” she said.
“Our economic development strategy is to stimulate the knowledge economy and enhance relationships between academia, industry and government to cultivate a skilled workforce that is aligned to the needs of our local businesses.”
Federation University Australia Berwick campus head Kathy Racunica said the university was “excited” to continue to work alongside the council to find solutions to local problems in areas such as health, employment and the environment.
“By collaborating with government and implementing the Co-operative Education Model to create programs that are collaboratively designed, developed and delivered with industry, we can identify skills and knowledge gaps and build a pipeline of qualified graduates to address local workforce shortages and help grow opportunities in the south east region,” she said.
The existing partnership between Casey Council and Federation University has resulted in the implementation of a number of projects, including addressing workforce shortages in Maternal Child Health Nursing (MCH), joint research initiatives on environment matters and sport participation and collaborative efforts in the region’s jobs and skills development.
