The Hodgman Government is committed to improving the literacy and numeracy levels of adult Tasmanians, which is why as Minister for Education and Training I am very pleased to appoint three new members to the 26TEN Coalition.
I welcome Dr Judith Watson from the health sector, Kym Goodes from the community sector and Simon Wiggins from adult learning, who will give the 26TEN Coalition a broader reach across our community to encourage everyone to take action to raise our literacy and numeracy levels.
They join 26TEN Coalition Chair and Local Government sector representative Daryl Quilliam, 26TEN Convenor Siobhan Gaskell, Malcom Wells from the education sector, Tim Tierney from the legal sector, Mellissa Gray from the state government sector, Angela Ross from the media sector, and Tanya Denison from the civil construction sector.
The 26TEN Coalition volunteer their time to champion the cause of adult literacy and numeracy and advocate action in their respective sectors. This brings together business, community and government to improve adult literacy and numeracy to help Tasmanians get the skills they need for life and work.
Business, community and government in Tasmania will continue to benefit from the work undertaken by 26TEN, with eleven 26TEN employer grants recently awarded by this Government to continue improving the literacy of employees and make them more literacy friendly.
This government’s ten-year strategy for adult literacy and numeracy in Tasmania “26TEN Tasmania” was launched last year, setting the framework for long-term collective action by the whole state to improve adult literacy and numeracy, backed by a commitment of approximately $4.5 million annually to resource the LINC Literacy Network and 26TEN.
These costs are now part of the recurrent funding of the Department of Education, and include:
o Costs of administering the literacy and 26TEN network across the state through 23 Literacy Coordinators and central support teams (approximately $3.7 million annually)
o $500,000 annually for the 26TEN grants program
o $300,000 annually for the LINC Literacy Skills Development Program
I sincerely thank outgoing 26TEN Coalition members Mary Bent, Royce Fairbrother and Jo Crothers for their contributions to encouraging business, community and Government to work together to help champion the cause of adult literacy and numeracy.
For more information about the 26TEN Coalition visit www.26ten.tas.gov.au.
More Media Releases from Jeremy Rockliff
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