An academy created to train public servants will be expanded to four regional areas in its first move beyond the nation's capital.
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In partnership with some universities, the APS Academy, a former Coalition government initiative based in Old Parliament House, will look for talent in areas hit hard by skills shortages, including cyber security and data analysts.
It will establish a presence in Darwin, Newcastle and Townsville by mid-next year with a fourth location in Launceston in 2024, creating 300 flexible data and digital training and entry-level employment opportunities over the next three years.
Public Service Minister Katy Gallagher, who announced the expansion on Tuesday, said it was another step to growing the digital industry and building technical skills for those early on in their career.
"Like the private sector, the APS is struggling to find enough people with the technical skills to fill roles in the data and digital space, but this academy program is the latest positive step in the right direction to deal with this issue and to ultimately keep those workers in the APS," she said.
"People have told us that they want to have careers in the APS but don't always want to leave the communities where they live, simply to take up new training opportunities interstate.
"That's why we have decided to make these training opportunities available in some of our larger regional towns and cities. This will attract aspiring public servants who will get the right skills to have the best chance at jobs in the APS while continuing to contribute to the places that they call home."
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The academy was first established in mid-2021 by then-assistant public service minister Ben Morton, as an initiative to school public servants in leadership and promote integrity in the workplace.
The training facility says it offers almost 300 courses a year to bureaucrats in-person and virtually.