General News
7 June, 2023
Innovated program breeding leadership
THE Brotherhood of St. Laurence (BSL) is helping to foster a new generation of agriculture experts across south west Victoria through the innovative AgFutures program.
AgFutures will provide entry-level training aligned with the specific needs of unemployed young people and local employers in the agriculture sector.
Participants will earn while they learn, and employers will reap the benefits of a highly skilled and enthusiastic cohort of young people working for them.
Through a multi-sector partnership which includes training providers, industry bodies, community stakeholders, young people and employers, AgFutures is testing a sustainable pathway which will enable up to 50 unemployed young people aged 17-25 to develop the technical and transferable skills needed to secure food and fibre jobs across the south west.
As part of the free program, applicants will combine training at South West TAFE’s Glenormiston campus with a tailored pre-employment program that includes a focus on work readiness, wellbeing and agricultural career exploration, before beginning work on farms for six months to benefit from paid, real-time work experience and training.
With the average age of agriculture employees in the South West sitting at 51 years old, the program is aiming to fill inevitable resourcing gaps in years to come by training a new cohort of engaged and capable farmers across various areas of the industry.
Employers are encouraged to join the growing number of organisations who have already signed on to support young workers in the region navigate their future farming careers.
Funded by the Victorian Government's Workforce Training Innovation Fund, AgFutures brings together six expert partner organisations South West TAFE, Skills Impact, Dairy Australia, Food and
Fibre Great South Coast, Brophy Family and Youth Services (Brophy), and the Brotherhood of St. Laurence (BSL).
As the enabling organisation, BSL is responsible for the administration, strategic governance and evaluation of the initiative.
More information on the AgFutures program is available at www.bsl.org.au/research/our-research-and-policy-work/projects/agfutures/.