School-based Aged Care Traineeships a First for Australia

IRT College has joined forces with government to trial a new approach to attract school leavers to pursue a career in aged care. 

At a time when demand for residential and home care is growing, thanks to Australia's booming ageing population, many care providers are facing a shortage of skilled workers.

"Aged care is one of only a few sectors with forecasts of long-term growth," said IRT College General Manager, Dr David Rosete. "But to support this growth, we need to attract and retain more skilled workers, particularly in rural and regional areas."

The Parliament of Australia is conducting an inquiry into the issue and has invited ideas about how to overcome workforce challenges facing the sector. With the average age of aged care employees being 49, attracting school leavers to take up care-based roles is a key issue, and Wollongong's IRT College believes it has a solution.

"We've partnered with the NSW Department of Industry and Apprenticeship Support Australia to pilot the industry's first School Based Apprenticeship Traineeship in a Certificate III in Individual Support," said Dr Rosete.

"We're really excited to have 14 students from eight Illawarra schools participating in the pilot.

"The students will combine their school studies with work and training to gain credits towards their Higher School Certificate and a nationally recognised aged care qualification," he said.

The students will complete their training at the end of the year and IRT Group Chief Executive, Nieves Murray said she hopes they will consider a career with IRT after completing their studies.

"I am thrilled IRT College has partnered with government to forge a new pathway into a career in aged care for our students," she said. "Like many care providers, less than 10 percent of our workforce is under 24 years of age, so we're definitely keen to attract more school leavers to IRT."

Ms Murray will meet with the students, their parents, guardians and school advisors today to wish them well with their studies and inspire them to pursue a career in aged care.

"I'll be telling them how enriching a care-based career can be, and how varied," she said. "We can offer school leavers secure jobs in a growth industry with a bright future, and there's more to aged care than personal care - the sky's the limit at IRT."

Click here to find out more about IRT's aged care services.