New research reveals women comprise only two per cent of workers in construction .

TAFE NSW provides women with pathways into a range of construction trades and already boasts a comparatively higher proportion of female enrolments in construction courses at nine per cent .

There are programs in place to increase this further , for example the NSW Government ’ s Infrastructure Skills Legacy Program which includes targets for major infrastructure projects to double the number of women in trade-related work .

TAFE NSW students Grace Moss and Jasmin Phillips have secured their dream jobs as carpenters and are urging others to consider a career in the industry with demand surging thanks to the construction boom .

“ People don ’ t seem to expect a female arriving at a job but with so many other women now working in the industry [ especially ] in the north coast area , I hope we ’ ll be changing people ’ s idea of what it means to be a tradie ,” Ms Phillips said .

TAFE NSW carpentry teacher David Harris said the Certificate III in Carpentry is a nationally accredited course and fully subsidised under JobTrainer .

“ We do everything we can to

TAFE NSW is boosting the number of women in the construction industry .

encourage and support women in trades at TAFE NSW and Jasmine and Grace are examples of the high calibre of apprentices produced . Increasing the number of women employed in the industry can contribute significantly to overcoming persistent skill shortages ,” Mr Harris said .

To find out more about the range of building and construction courses at TAFE NSW visit tafensw . edu . au or phone 131 601 .

The Government is maximising fresh air in classrooms under a new program to protect school communities from the spread of COVID-19

A boost to natural ventilation is headed to more than 10,000 public school classrooms with the rollout of automatic fresh air ventilation systems , as the NSW Government bolsters protection against COVID-19 for school communities .

Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell said the $ 100 million Air Quality Assurance Program was focused on delivering permanent improvements to natural ventilation in classrooms , based on evidence and expert advice .

“ The World Health Organisation , the Doherty Institute and NSW Health agree that maximising natural ventilation in classrooms by opening windows and doors remains the most effective method for minimising the spread of COVID-19 – and this is the foundation of our approach in schools ,” Ms Mitchell said .

“ The NSW Government is committed to keeping students learning face to face at school and is taking steps to ensure that we maximise fresh air in our classrooms . Installation of these systems will further enhance the quality of air in

our classrooms .”

The Air Quality Assurance Program was announced in October 2021 following the comprehensive audit of more than 150,000 spaces across all NSW public schools . The audit , combined with independent , expert advice from building services consultant Steensen Varming , has guided the targeted approach to ventilation in schools .

The 10,000 classrooms newly identified to receive automatic fresh air ventilation build on the 2,000 classrooms announced last year .

The program is supporting permanent upgrades to windows , ceiling and exhaust fans , additional servicing of ventilation systems , procurement of 19,000 air purifiers and the ongoing installation of automatic fresh air ventilation systems .

In addition to the Air Quality Assurance Program , permanent fresh air ventilation systems are also being progressively installed in thousands of classrooms as part of the NSW Government ’ s $ 500 million Cooler Classrooms program .

As at February 2022 , more than 5,500 classrooms and 380 libraries have had systems installed under this program .