New trade training centres for the Hunter

Three schools in the Hunter will benefit from Labor's latest round of its multi-million dollar trades training centre program.

The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd has promised $200 million worth of trades training centres will be built in 137 schools.

Trade training centres will be set up at Morisset and Lake Macquarie High Schools and St Philips Christian College at Waratah.

A $1 million will be spent building an engineering, and machining and fabrication area at Lake Macquarie.

The same amount will be spent at Morisset on a commercial kitchen and teaching bistro.

Labor candidate for Newcastle, Sharon Claydon says St Philips Christian College will receive a $1.2 million hospitality training centre.

"There will be a new commercial kitchen, a function room, a cool room and new equipment to deliver hospitality training, which is an area of skills shortage in this region," she said.

"So really St Philips Christian College will have stand-out facilities for hospitality."

St Philips Christian College executive principal Graeme Irwin says the training centre will go a long way to tackling the region's chronic skills shortages.

He says detailed plans for the commercial kitchen can now be drawn up.

Mr Irwin expects construction will get underway sometime next year.

"Look we run a lot of courses already and a lot of our students are participating in these courses," he said.

"I think it will go a long way (to tackling skills shortages in the region).

"We'll be able to train more students and already employers like the calibre of student that comes out of our St Philip's schools and this will go a long way to even improving that."

Source: ABC News, 15 August 2013