University of Western Sydney - Werrington Park Corporate Centre

The University of Western Sydney will receive $13.5 million to support the $29.5 million Werrington Park Corporate Centre in Penrith. The centre will create a focal point for new employment in the region and trigger the longer term development of a comprehensive business park in Penrith.

The 'Metropolitan Plan for Sydney 2036' estimates that Western Sydney will become home to a further one million residents, to a total of 2.8 million people, by 2036. Currently, over 60 per cent of the Penrith local government area’s workforce leave the area each day for work.

The Werrington Park Corporate Centre will comprise the development of a three storey office building and business incubator to foster new and innovative local businesses and provide much needed quality office space in a business park environment.

The Werrington Park Corporate Centre will focus on attracting enterprises in the e-health, digital communications and intelligent engineering sectors who will utilise National Broadband Network connectivity to distribute knowledge services to local, national and global markets.

The project provides an opportunity to significantly enhance early employment infrastructure and services in the precinct, which is likely to have enduring benefits in promoting high quality employment opportunities, retaining skilled graduates from the university and offering well paid employment to skilled local residents.

The centre will be sustainably designed and will include the use of grey water for irrigation, high quality environmentally responsible building materials and effective use of natural ventilation to reduce running costs.

The University of Western Sydney will partner with the Penrith Business Alliance and Penrith City Council to deliver the project.

City of Playford - The Stretton Centre

The City of Playford will receive $11.3 million for the $15.3 million Stretton Centre, an employment research and development facility to be located within the Playford Alive project area. Playford Alive is a long term initiative which commenced in 2008 and is regenerating the Playford area.

The City of Playford is situated 30km north of Adelaide's CBD and is at the forefront of South Australia's growth. In 2009-10, Playford was the fastest growing local government area within the Adelaide state district, and is facing project population growth of 130 per cent over the period 2011-2036. This growth, together with a lack of diverse local employment opportunities and high unemployment, has driven the need for an integrated approach to develop local skills and local employment opportunities.

The Playford area is experiencing a structural shift from employment concentrated in the manufacturing sector to jobs growth in sectors such as the clean technology and health sectors.

The Stretton Centre will provide learning services for job seekers, co-locate industry development and support services for businesses, and conduct relevant, innovative employment related research. Local businesses will be able to access training, mentoring and specialist advice in the integrated community facility.

The research component of the project will be led by the Australian Workplace Innovation and Social Research Centre at the University of Adelaide. Research into population and employment trends will help to fill data gaps by examining employer demand at the local level, and will assess the effectiveness of current workforce development programs. This research agenda will enable the development of appropriate responses to the economic needs and opportunities in the Playford area, including through partnerships with local employers to boost local employment opportunities.

The centre will feature modern urban design and sustainability principles and will serve as a showcase for other building work in the area.

Melton City Council - Western Business Accelerator and Centre for Excellence

Melton City Council will receive $14.6 million towards the establishment of the $21 million Western Business Accelerator and Centre for Excellence which will be built in the Toolern Precinct, located 19 km west of Melbourne.

On average, 52 new families are moving into the City of Melton each week, driving demand for thousands of homes each year. There is roughly one local job for every three working residents in Melton and at present around 83 per cent of the workforce leave the area for work.

The funding will contribute towards a sustainably designed business hub in the heart of the developing Toolern precinct which will provide office space and support for new and growing businesses.

The hub will have a particular focus on supporting the construction sector given the importance of this industry in providing new homes for the growing population. Training for construction businesses on issues such as environmentally sustainable building design and construction will be provided. The hub will also provide small business owners with office space and access to training in business management skills.

The Western Business Accelerator and Centre for Excellence will also provide access to the National Broadband Network through a data centre, so that businesses can further benefit from the emerging digital economy.

Melton City Council will partner with Lend Lease, the Burbank Group of Companies and the Kangan Institute to deliver the project. The University of Ballarat and Victoria University will provide research, education and training support.