Four staff will be out of work and 72 students will be forced to take classes elsewhere after the closure of the Sunshine campus of an accredited training college.
Training giant Evocca College said last month it would close more than a third of its campuses around Australia, including one at Sunshine Plaza shopping centre.
Staff were told 220 jobs out of 770 would go and 17 campuses would close, affecting about 900 students.
Evocca College spokeswoman Suzanne Ross said the 72 students enrolled at Sunshine would be directed to its Melbourne campus.
“We are working hard to ensure all students affected are transitioned smoothly to their new study environment, and that there is minimal disruption to their studies as they progress through their courses,” she said.
Ms Ross said the four full-time staff who had been made redundant were being supported “as best we can”.
She said they were offered an employment assistance program and outplacement services.
In a statement, Evocca College chief executive Craig White said the college’s restructure follows the introduction of more stringent testing requirements for students to begin taxpayer-funded diploma courses, and changes “to the operating environment” for vocational colleges.
Last December, the Turnbull government froze payments to private colleges accessing the VET FEE-HELP scheme – a loan scheme for TAFE students – at 2015 levels.
The previous Labor federal government extended the tertiary loan scheme to include private education providers. Last year, Evocca College received about $200 million from the scheme, the second largest sum after Careers Australia.
Mr White told staff his organisation would be consolidating its operations “to ensure it continues to deliver high-quality and innovative education for its students”.
“We have regretfully advised staff that we are closing and merging 17 of our smaller physical campuses, and consolidating our distance and head office operations in Queensland,” he said.
Affected students have also been given the option to study online.
Victorian campuses to close are at Epping, Melton, Sunshine, Werribee, Preston and Ringwood. Others will close at Bankstown, Blacktown, Browns Plains, Campbelltown, Glenorchy, Gosford, Morayfield, Penrith, Seven Hills, Southport and Woodridge.
The Sunshine campus opened in 2014. The campus’s closure closely follows the collapse of Global Intellectual Holdings, which ran private training colleges including Aspire College and Keystone College at Broadmeadows.
