Hort enrolments at tafeSA growing

Certificate III in Horticulture numbers have risen 38 per cent from 189 last year to 260 this year.

Last year the government announced it would be closing several rural campuses, along with its Urrbrae campus, which specialises in horticulture courses.

Following public outcry and a petition with more than 3500 signatures, in July this year the government announced it would be keeping the sites open.

Horticulture is one of several courses to experience a rise in enrolments in the past 12 months with enrolments across all tafeSA courses up by more than 2100 students.

tafeSA chief executive David Coltman said the growth in student numbers across some of the organisation's popular program areas was a positive sign for the future.

"It is an exciting time for TAFE SA, we have a strong focus on the quality of our training, along with the increased use of emerging technologies, so that we are ensuring our students are equipped with the right skills for the right jobs," he said.

"The increase in students across a variety of our courses indicates we are on the right path, however there is more work to do as we seek continuous improvement across everything we do.

"We are working closely with industry to ensure we are meeting local skill requirements, including in regional areas across the state."

Enrolment numbers for electricians and plumbers are at the highest numbers ever at Tonsley.

The fastest growing course is the new Certificate IV in Cyber Security, with a 1360pc growth rate from five to 73 students, with the advent of the new Cyber Traineeship pathway.

Demand is also growing for the Certificate II in Skills for Work and Vocational Pathways, a relatively new qualification that provides language, literacy and numeracy skills training to build skills for work and for pathways into further VET opportunities, which has increased enrolments by more than 200 students this year.