Drysdale Old Woolstore Housekeeping Academy

Throughout Australia there is a shortage of young people willing to take on lower paid employment, especially in the service industries.  With Tasmania's economy increasingly dependent on high quality hospitality services this issue is of growing concern.

There are people within the population who would take on these responsibilities if given the opportunity. However through lack of experience many are unaware of how to gain this employment.  This includes women without qualifications returning to the workforce, new arrivals in the country and those with language problems.

The Drysdale Institute addressed this by partnering with the The Old Woolstore Apartment Hotel to deliver a course in housekeeping operations.

Background

Drysdale Institute is a specialised TAFE institute for training in Tourism, Hospitality, Cookery, Baking and Meat Processing.  Drysdale was a pioneer in the provision of ‘live venue' hospitality training through the operation of a shop front outlet in which students could gain real time, commercial and industry standard experience.  Drysdale has operated a commercial restaurant and associated small motel venue within the College for over 25 years.

While the restaurant was able to create the real time pressures that develop high level work skills, similar demands on back of house aspects of accommodation service provision were not as well addressed.

Innovation

A 2005 review by the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania (TICT) into the tourism and hospitality training delivered by the Drysdale Institute identified a gap in the delivery and assessment of accommodation training. In response, the Drysdale Institute negotiated local partnerships with international standard hotels to address the problem.  The most successful of which is the Housekeeping Academy which it operates in partnership with the Old Woolstore Hotel.

Michelle Crawford (Hospitality Teacher - South) in conjunction with Brendan McGovern (Executive Housekeeper - Woolstore) designed and facilitated The Old Woolstore/Drysdale Housekeeping Academy. The Academy was established in early 2005 and conducts a Certificate II in Hospitality (Operations). The partnership provides Drysdale Institute students with a unique opportunity to gain a formal and industry-specific qualification.

The certificate course is offered over a six week period. After an initial two weeks of training at Drysdale, the course is conducted on the premises of the Old Woolstore.

For the first two weeks, the students attend Drysdale for four days per week.  At the end of this time, students are workplace safe and have sufficient understanding of the job role to undertake on the job training for the remaining four weeks as part of 0830 -1400 normal operations at The Old Woolstore Hotel.

The course is held during months of greater tourism demand, specifically in January/February and in October and November.  This ensures that the hotel is well staffed during periods of higher demand.

The quality of the course has meant that it has also attracted those who might not otherwise take on this type of employment, but see it as a stepping stone to career openings.  It has also attracted overseas interest from Asia which is a further indicator of an important need being identified.

Housekeeping students are predominantly females who are in many cases seeking to return to the workforce.  Hence they tend to be mature-aged with significant breaks in their employment experience.  There are also a small number of Sudanese migrant women and a small number of international students from Korea and the Philippines.  This means there is a significant component of functional literacy included in the course to ensure that they can all read and understand written English in notices, signs and written instructions.

The course addresses a number of concerns raised in the 2004 TICT report.

First, it puts experience and the ability to deal with real life situations as its primary objective with the Certificate II qualification providing the base. Second, it recognises the importance of demonstrated industry competence through its partnership with the Woolstore Hotel.  Finally, it recognises the need to prepare students to the needs of the industry and the standards they expect. One of the key industry points of satisfaction is the high level of practical experience that the students gain through the partnership.

Success

The output of these courses to date is 36 students.  All who have started the course to this point have successfully completed the training and moved into employment. 

The 100% employment placement rate for the course demonstrates the quality of the graduates to and the unique success of the partnership.

The partnership demonstrates considerable local innovation through the creation of an academy using very small student numbers and maintaining a focus on quality outcomes that are strongly aligned with the needs of industry.  The 100% completion rate supports the view that this partnership is a good practice example of training provision reaching out and meeting both individual and industry needs.

The effectiveness of the program lies in the positive co-operation between management and staff within The Old Woolstore and the Drysdale Institute.  Significant work and effort has been undertaken by teaching staff at the Drysdale Institute to ensure the delivery and outcomes of the program are aligned with the Old Woolstore training and recruitment needs.

The value of this opportunity is enhanced by the collaborative delivery of training and assessment by teaching staff from the Drysdale Institute and supervisory housekeeping staff from The Old Woolstore.

The Housekeeping Academy recognises current industry competencies for existing Woolstore employees, as well as providing a realistic and holistic training experience for Drysdale students many of whom become Woolstore employees.  The partnership gives students exposure to the realities of working in the ever-growing hospitality industry, which enhances their employability.

In 2005 the Drysdale Institute Old Woolstore Housekeeping Academy received a "Learning Together Award for Excellence' for establishing a relevant pre-employment program with 100% employment outcomes.