Shepparton Health and Tertiary Education Precincts Action Plan

The Shepparton Health and Tertiary Education Action Plan (Action Plan) provides a framework to attract and align investment to grow Shepparton as a health and tertiary education destination. It aims to support the expansion of important health and tertiary education facilities, leading to increased employment opportunities and improved service provision for the benefit of the wider community.

The Action Plan identifies two clusters of health and tertiary education facilities in Shepparton; being the Shepparton CBD Health and Tertiary Education Hub, and the Graham Street Health and Tertiary Education Precinct.

The Action Plan recognises the need for a coordinated and collaborative approach to realising the health and tertiary education aspirations of the community, which has become increasingly important due to investment in the CBD hub, and expansion of health services and health-related tertiary opportunities in the Graham Street precinct.

The development of the Action Plan was overseen by a Project Working Group, which included representatives from Council, GOTAFE, La Trobe University and GV Health. One Collective Pty Ltd was engaged in February 2019 to conduct workshops between relevant stakeholders, government organisations, and health and educational institutions prevalent in the Shepparton area. An Issues and Opportunities Report was prepared to summarise the feedback and issues raised during the workshops: Shepparton: Health, Education and Innovation Precinct – The Vision.

This collaborative approach was used to create a vision for health and tertiary education in Shepparton, which is to create a better future:

  1. By connecting: taking a more holistic and collaborative approach that better engages and connects health and education providers, government bodies, industry expertise, local businesses and entrepreneurs and the community to promote new ideas, partnerships and opportunities to deliver better outcomes.
  2. Through innovation: creating a hub and precinct that promotes innovation and forward thinking and becomes known as a leader in health, education and innovation to help attract funding and partnerships, regional support, industry attention and high-quality staff and students.
  3. For the city: creating a hub and precinct with improved health, education and related services within the Greater Shepparton area that can also be used as a catalyst for change and creating a better future for the city and community.

To achieve this, five priority actions have been developed to drive the success of the health and education sector in Shepparton. These actions are outlined in the Action Plan and include:

  1. establish the Shepparton Health and Tertiary Education Steering Committee;
  2. prepare an aligned business case to attract investment in the health and tertiary education sector;
  3. invest in infrastructure to enhance connectivity to and between health and tertiary education facilities;
  4. deliver urban realm improvements in the Shepparton CBD to enhance the location as one to study, work and invest; and
  5. advocate for funding for the GV Health and La Trobe University Clinical School at Graham Street.

At the Ordinary Council Meeting held on 18 February 2020, Council resolved to:

  1. receive and note the Shepparton: Health, Education and Innovation Precinct – The Vision; and
  2. adopt the Shepparton Health & Tertiary Education Precincts Action Plan.

Following the adoption of the Action Plan, further submissions were received in early March 2020 from the Department of Education and Training, and the University of Melbourne. The following minor changes were made to the Action Plan:

  1. The addition of the Department of Education and Training to the list of acronyms;
  2. Additional wording throughout the document to reflect the findings and recommendations of the Shepparton Education Plan;
  3. The need for any future business case to consider funding for research partnerships to develop a sustainable local workforce;
  4. Add the Department of Education and Training, the University of Melbourne Department of Rural Health, Rumbalara Aboriginal Co-operative and local disability and support services as key stakeholders; and
  5. Amend ‘Goulburn Valley High School’ to read ‘Goulburn Valley Grammar School’.