SSV Newsletter: Issue 13

New chair elected for Service Skills Victoria

Following the December board meeting, SSV welcomes Sandra Campitelli as the new chair of SSV. Sandra has been General Manager of the Hairdressing & Beauty Industry Association for 10 years. She is also Executive Director for the Hardware Association of Victoria. John Sweetman steps into the role of Deputy Chair.

Name change for OTTE

Please make note that OTTE has changed its name to Skills Victoria as of April 2008. Skills Victoria is a division of the Department of Innovation, Industry and Regional Development (DIIRD). Skills Victoria formerly operated as the Office of Training and Tertiary Education (OTTE).

Skills Victoria provides strategic advice and analysis of Victoria's skill needs, and acts as the system managers for the vocational education and training sector.

Despite the very similar names, SSV continues to operate as the Victorian ITAB for WRAPS and Tourism, Hospitality and Events.

Victorian scoops the pool at spas awards

Victoria scooped the pool at the Australasian Spa Association Spas of Excellence awards.

Mineral Spa at Peppers Springs Retreat reinforced that Hepburn Springs and the Daylesford Macedon Ranges region is the spa capital of Australia, taking out three awards including Best Day Spa (Rural), Best Hotel Spa and the readers' choice award.

Meanwhile St Kilda Spa Dreamtime took out the honours in the Best Day Spa (Urban) category while Peace & Quiet in Ballarat was the winner of the Employer of Choice Award.

With the awards attracting entries from all over Australasia, being recognised by the spa industry is a wonderful achievement.

For further information visit: http://www.aspaassociation.com.au.

Victorian Training Awards

The Awards recognise the important contribution made by apprentices, trainees, students, teachers, employers, training providers and industry in building a world-class VET system in Victoria. Thirteen awards are presented each year, delivering a pathway of achievement that spans across the VET system and industry.

Finalists attended the Victorian Training Awards Presentation Dinner where the winners for each category were announced. Around 1000 people attended this gala event, which was hosted by the Minister for Skills and Workforce Participation, Jacinta Allan, MP.

The 2008 Victorian Training Awards Presentation Dinner was held at Atlantic Group's Peninsula Room on Thursday 21 August 2008.

For a full list of winners and finalists, visit http://www.skills.vic.gov.au/awards

Australian Training Awards

Victoria had three winners and was represented by nine finalists from eleven categories in the 2008 Australian Training Awards. Swinburne University of Technology (TAFE Division) also won the Australian Flexible Learning Framework sponsored Innovative Business Award. For details onthe Victorianwinners, please visit the Australian Training Awards website.

2008 Awards for Excellence - Restaurant & Catering Victoria

The 2008 Restaurant & Catering Victoria Awards for Excellence on Tuesday were held on the 5th of August at Peninsula at Atlantic South Wharf.

Over 475 attendees were first treated to a unique performance by La Prima before MC Helen Razer kicked of the formalities. In her unique way she entertained the many restaurateurs and catering professionals while announcing this year's award recipients.

Developing Tourism Leaders Awards

The Developing Tourism Leaders Awards were held on Monday 10th Of November. They were a great success with a good turnout of students and industry representatives. The tourism category winner was Isabelle Mauderli from Victoria University with her submission 'Discovery Podcast Creations', a company that specialises in podcast's for tourism businesses. The hospitality category winner was Lorena Ropain, from Kangan Batman TAFE with her submission 'The Recess Café', a coffee shop in Carlton, adding entertainment to the coffee experience. The events category winner was Katie Clough from William Angliss Institute with her submission 'The Body Art Festival 2010', a brand new concept for Australia. Katie was also the overall winner. Thank you to all those involved in these awards, particularly the major sponsors, premium sponsor and principal sponsor, whose support allows this initiative to grow each year. For more information on the DTL awards please visit the website at www.dtlawards.com.

Victorian Tourism Awards

The VTA are highly reflective of the state of the Victorian tourism industry. The Awards act as a development opportunity in the skills training and professionalism and play an integral role in encouraging and rewarding excellence, innovation and commitment in the industry.

The awards help to raise standards through a structured submission process of self-assessment through the preparation of a written document which is then reviewed by industry peers who respond carefully to defined national criteria. The Awards process culminates in a night that recognises and promotes outstanding achievement by those at the heart of the industry.

The gala presentation night was held on Monday the 17th November at the Crown Palladium and was once again a fantastic night for the tourism industry. SSV would like to pass on well deserved congratulations to all businesses that entered the awards. We know the process you have to go through and we encourage your initiative to take your business to the next level. A particular congratulations must go to the businesses who were announced as finalists or merit winners and of course those businesses that were announced as winners in their category or entered the Hall of Fame.

It was pleasing to see the number of accredited businesses that did so well, and we take our hats off to you.

If you would like to see a full list of winners, please visit www.victoriantourismawards.com.au.

Training Packages - Update (check the latest update on SSA's website www.serviceskills.com)

Caravan Review

Following widespread consultation with the caravan industry, Service Skills Australia has completed the revision of qualifications and competency standards that the industry will use in the future. Consultations included industry members from all over Australia involved in the manufacturing, servicing and retail of caravans, and caravan park operators.

A 'Summary of Changes', along with the revised Qualifications and Competency Standards,is available on the SSA website.

The manufacturing and servicing qualifications and standards will now form part of the Manufacturing Training Package, which is overseen by Manufacturing Skills Australia. The qualifications for caravan parks will be endorsed as part of the newly revised Tourism, Hospitality and Events Training Package.

Funeral Services Training Package

This package was submitted for endorsement in December 2007. Service Skills Australia was notified on the 27 August 2008 that the SIF08 Funeral Services Training Package was endorsed by the National Quality Council (NQC). It is hoped that it will be available to the public early January 2009.

Tourism Hospitality and Events

Service Skills Australia has commenced work on the Continuous Improvement of the Tourism, Hospitality and Events Training Package.

Three areas have been identified by industry for further scoping and action. These are:

• Scoping of Inert Gas Safety
• Scoping of Coffee Art
• Scoping of Sommelier
• Updating of Wine knowledge units of competency from Agri-Foods

There will be more information available on the SSA website as consultation begins.

Beauty

Service Skills Australia is currently conducting a project for the continuous improvement of the WRB04 Beauty Training Package. The continuous improvement of this training package provides the opportunity for industry, training organisations, employers, employees and anyone else with an interest in this training package to be involved and provide input into the further skills and knowledge requirements of thebeauty industry.

Floristry

Service Skills Australia is currently conducting a project for the continuous improvement of the WRF04 Floristry Training Package. The continuous improvement of this training package provides the opportunity for industry, training organisations, employers, employees and anyone else with an interest in this training package to be involved and provide input into the further skills and knowledge requirements of the floristry industry.

Phase one of the review involved research and analysis of the training package to evaluate its currency and relevance for industry and to address any barriers that inhibit their quality implementation. A report was developed based on the information received that includes recommendations on improvements to be made to the training package.

National Tourism Accreditation Framework

Martin Ferguson, as Federal Minister for Tourism has announced that he will be working towards the development of a 'National Tourism Accreditation Framework'. This is expected to involve the development of a single tourism accreditation 'brand' that is supported by governments, state and federal, and can assist our industry to become more professional and to improve the quality of our customers' experiences. Ian Nicolson, as Executive Officer of the Tourism Accreditation Board of Victoria, has been invited to join the Ministerial Working Party that is providing advice to the Minister on the development of the framework.

Australian Tourism Accreditation Program Launch

Australia's tourism industry received a tick of approval with the launch of a voluntary national accreditation program.

The long-awaited national program is designed to ensure domestic and international tourists direct their buying habits more than ever to those operators who have passed the tick test.

Martin Ferguson, Federal Minister for Tourism has welcomed the initiative as a crucial component of the National Tourism Accreditation Framework.

Tourism in Australia is big business with inbound tourism expenditure in 2006-7 generating $9.9 billion to the Australian economy while international visitors consumed $22.4 billion worth of goods and services. Most tourism operations are small businesses, directly employing around 482,000 people.

The tourism accreditation program was initiated in 1996 in Western Australia. Since then all States and Territories have begun their own programs, with the exception of New South Wales and Queensland.

The decision to create a national online program, designed to ease the process of a tourism business becoming accredited, was taken last year after a two-year pilot in Victoria.

The participating State and Territory Governments have provided strong financial and in-kind support into the program which brings Australia to world's best practice.

Western Australia and Northern Territory have committed to making accreditation mandatory by 2010; South Australia is considering mandating it while the other participating governments have put in place incentives for accredited businesses.

Today there are over 3,000 operators nationally who are accredited and entitled to use the Tourism Accredited Business symbol of a yellow tick in a star and green circle.

That number is set to increase significantly as the number of operators takes advantage of the easier but more rigorous system. "Before the online program launch, tourism businesses had to fill out paper-based forms that relied on accreditation bodies to take it on faith that required documents had been created," Mr Nicolson said.

The web-based accreditation program been developed by the University of Ballarat's Centre for eCommerce and Communications.

The program is for all tourism businesses throughout Australia, regardless of their size and includes business operating systems, licences and permits, insurance details, marketing plans, economic and financial systems, codes of practice and ethics.

For more information, visit www.tourismaccreditationvic.com.au.

Reframing the Future Projects 2008 - Events Community of Practice

SSV's Reframing project for 2008 was a community of practice looking at event management. The workshops were successfully completed and SSV is now in the process of developing a user friendly career chart highlighting the different paths you can take with events and highlighting industry's desire for practical experience. This will be on the SSV website as soon as all the feedback back from the group has been received.

Reframing the Future - Hospitality Working Group

SSV, in partnership with industry bodies Restaurant and Catering Victoria, ALH Group and Crown Melbourne, and training institutes William Angliss Institute, Ascet TAFE, Swinburne University, Ballarat University, Victoria University, Diversitat and East Gippsland Institute of TAFE, have developed a Certificate II Hospitality work placement manual to assist in developing relationships between a student, small business and RTO to establish a successful placement opportunity for a student looking at getting into hospitality. The manuals have been designed for the student and the employer and outline process and procedures, insurance and payment requirements, relevant agreements for parties to sign and a clear outline to an employer of the skills the student will be able to practice in their business.

Reframing the Future to close

Reframing the Future, the national program of professional development and change management to support the implementation of the national training system, will close at the end of 2008.

At the Council of Australian Governments' (COAG) meeting on 29 November 2008 all state and territory governments and the Australian Government agreed to sign up to a new National Skills Workforce Development Agreement(PDF 40.4KB)

Under the new arrangements, funding for some activities and projects under the current agreement is being rolled into the funding base. Governments agreed that responsibility for vocational education and training (VET) workforce development rests with the states and territories and they will manage this responsibility in line with the specific needs of their jurisdictions.

Training Package User Guides

Service Skills Australia has developed a series of Training Package User Guides, largely in response to two key industry concerns:

• the need to improve quality training and assessment;
• industry's frustration at not being able to articulate all of its key quality requirements in the TP because of national template restrictions and the involvement on non-industry parties.

The focus of the user guides is to clearly set out industry views and expectations about how training and assessment should occur. They have been developed through a process of consultation with various levels of industry and should therefore help ensure good practice in skills and knowledge development.

User guides have been developed for Tourism Hospitality and Events, Retail and Hairdressing, with other training packages to follow.

Real Maths in the Classroom

SSV along with Kooweerup Secondary College, Pakenham Secondary College and the Victorian Food Industry Training Board are working to trial strategies to keep students with vocational aspirations connected with mathematics in the classroom. By providing students with real life situations in which maths will be used in their chosen industries the Real Maths project aims to engage students more directly in their fields. Please visit the SSV website for more information.

Tourism Alliance unites with Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Victoria's peak tourism bodies have taken up opportunity to unite in a recommendation that was accepted unanimously by the TAV Board.

Supported by the resources of the Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI), this move demonstrates TAV's leadership within the tourism industry and provides its members with increased influence and opportunity.

The TAV office will re-locate to Industry House, 486 Albert Street, East Melbourne (effective 8/12/08) to gain significant operational efficiencies and ensure strengthened communication between Victoria's peak tourism bodies. TAV staff can still be contacted on phone 03 9650 8399 and existing email info@tourismalliance.com.au

Furthermore, the move will ensure that TAV maintains its own Board, assets, liabilities, programs and profile. Current TAV staff will be employed by VECCI, however, they will continue to be dedicated to servicing TAV members, supported by VECCI's extensive business services resources. The management of this united tourism industry structure will be headed up by current TAV CEO, Anthony McIntosh.

According to VECCI Chair, Jeremy Johnson, this development will assist in ensuring that the leadership, structure and resources of the Victorian Tourism industry are the strongest and most cohesive in Australia. In recognition of the vital role that TAV performs within the State's tourism sector, Jeremy Johnson today also announced the appointment of TAV Chair, Roger Grant, to the position of Deputy Chair for VTIC.

VET fact sheets available

Training Packages @ Work, a leading source of news and information on training packages and vocational education and training, has released a comprehensive set of fact sheets on the national training system:

For more information please check http://www.tpatwork.com/FactSheets.asp.

Work Placement Students at SSV

SSV in conjunction with ATAP was happy to take on five work placement students this year through the William Angliss Institute Work Placement Practicum program.

Mr. Thomson Ho and Ms Nataliya Yako were with us in semester one, working with ATAP. Thomson completed project work between ATAP and the Victorian Camps Association, looking at combining the two accreditation programs. Nataliya was involved with administration of the accreditation program and assisted with business applications and renewals.

We had Ms Hala Ali in semester two, assisting with the pre event work of the Developing Tourism Leaders awards and administrative work with ATAP. Mr Amaury Blassiuax began in semester two and it became obvious that his passion lies within travel, so Amaury moved on to experience his placement at a travel agency in the city. We were very pleased that we were able to assist in helping him choose the sector of the industry that was best suited to him.

Hayley Page kindly accepted the offer to cover the remaining days in semester two and she was a fantastic help to have on board. Hayley assisted with the event itself and post event administration. Congratulations to Hala, Amaury and Hayley and we wish you all the success in your future careers.

Young Tourism Network

2008 has been another successful year for the YTN. A new committee was voted in, and has continued to make the network an exciting group to be a part of, planning more social and professional development functions. The YTN committee as of 2008 is:

• Louise Conley - Chair (ING Real EstateDevelopment)
• Matt Jones - Deputy Chair(RoyalBotanical Gardens)
• Penny Wilson - Events Coordinator (Tourism Melbourne)
• Chris Porter - Membership & Treasurer (Tourism Alliance)
• Nellie Rouse - Newsletter Coordinator(Best of Victoria)
• Emma Robilliard - University/TAFE Coordinator (Service Skills Victoria)
• Sarah McGaw - Events Coordinator(AAA Tourism)
• Fiona Brooke - Marketing Coordinator (Tourism Alliance)
• Renee Ashcroft - Secretary (Destination Melbourne)
• Marcia Ryan - Events Coordinator (Hotel Discovery)

Please keep an eye on the YTN website (www.youngtourismnetwork.com.au) for event details and upcoming professional development sessions that may be of interest to you, or membership details if you would like to join the network.

SSV Website

SSV is undergoing a complete revamp of its website to give more direction to industry, trainers and people looking to study tourism, hospitality and events or wraps. After several meetings and consultations with staff, final edit is underway and we will start the New Year with our new look website.

Christmas wishes

SSV would like to wish all our colleagues a very merry and safe Christmas and look forward to a positive working relationship in 2009.

From left: Brooke Attrill (ATAP), Lynne Stockdale (VFITB), Ellen Frew (SSV), Emma Robilliard (SSV), Lina Robinson (SSV), Ian Nicolson (SSV), Sally Curtis (ATAP), Julian Wearne (SSV) and Judy Slevison (SSV)

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