Toi-Ohomai South Waikato closure: Taskforce to explore education solutions

The South Waikato Trades Training Centre Pukenga Rau in Tokoroa.

A dedicated task force is exploring education and workforce needs in the South Waikato District, following the proposed closure of Toi-Ohomai‘s Tokoroa campus.

The task force, set up by South Waikato District Council, would analyse data to ensure the training opportunities on offer meet the needs of the district’s employers and be incorporated into the existing Project Phoenix group.

The task force was set up after a meeting with key stakeholders earlier this month, including Taupō MP Louise Upston, South Waikato District mayor Gary Petley, and leadership from Toi-Ohomai.

“The idea is to get key stakeholders together to give us the best view of what is needed and what we can do,” a spokesperson for the council said.

While the members of the task force have not yet been confirmed, the plan was to have “representation from a range of industry groups”.

“We plan to hold the first meeting in the next couple of weeks,” the spokesperson said.

Petley said the group would work “with urgency”.

“We are establishing this group to gather and analyse data which will help inform Toi-Ohomai on the programmes that will work in our district, and which we know there is demand for from employers,” Petley said.

“The jobs are there, we have companies that want to grow here, and as a council, we are actively pushing to encourage more economic growth in the district, so we need to make sure our people are equipped to service that in the future.”

Upston called on Project Phoenix to investigate education requirements within the district and how local schools are feeding into courses currently offered at the Tokoroa campus.

Taupo MP Louise Upston.

“Over the next three months, the taskforce will research the skills needed for the region’s workforce, and how those can best be provided by local trainers,” she said.

Tertiary education funding

Following the Government’s announcement in July, that Te Pūkenga will be disestablished to return 10 polytechnics to regional governance, the Cabinet established a special fund.

The $20 million transition fund, distributed by the Tertiary Education Commission, is meant to support polytechs to continue delivering strategically important training during the transition from Te Pūkenga.

Upston said Toi-Ohomai Tokoroa had applied for a portion of that funding.

The Pūkenga Rau building in Tokoroa.

“I will be advocating on its behalf to help it regain independence and financial viability to deliver courses which prepare students for careers in the region.”

Toi-Ohomai executive director Kieran Hewitson said they welcomed the opportunity to apply for funding.

“The... fund... presents a potential pathway forward.

“If successful, [the funding] will allow us more time to work with the Tokoroa community to develop a viable plan.”

Toi-Ohomai executive director Kieran Hewitson. Photo / Supplied

A spokesperson for the Tertiary Education Commission said the commission was in the process of engaging with the polytechs that applied for funding to make the “allocation decisions”.

“Polytechs will be notified in the coming month.”

Staff cuts and campus closures

The Bay of Plenty and Waikato-based Toi-Ohomai Institute of Technology proposed last month to disestablish the jobs of 166.7 fulltime equivalent staff, with a net loss of 63.9 roles after proposed new roles are filled.

Toi-Ohomai said that falling student numbers along with reduced revenue and increasing costs made the campus unviable in Tokoroa.

“Where we can work with employers, hapū and iwi and other groups to deliver programmes in Tokoroa, we will,” Hewitson said at the time.

In a statement to the Waikato Herald this week, she said the final decision was still outstanding.

“While we are currently undergoing a consultation process that proposes a shift away from campus-based delivery in Tokoroa from 2026, no final decision has been made.”

The nearest campuses to Tokoroa are at least an hour’s drive away in Rotorua, Tauranga or Hamilton.

Danielle Zollickhofer is the Waikato news director and a multimedia journalist at the Waikato Herald. She joined NZME in 2021 and is based in Hamilton.