Education and intervention services for at-risk youth will continue to be offered in Mernda following the endorsement of a lease-extension at the Council Meeting on Tuesday 18 July.
PRACE (Preston and Reservoir Adult Community Education) was this week granted a lease extension for the continued use of land located within the Mernda Recreation Reserve in Schotters Road, Mernda, from 9 years to 20 years, taking their lease agreement through to 2041.
PRACE provide specialist intervention services for vulnerable young people as well as adult education services. This includes language, literacy and numeracy as well as the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL), pre-VCAL and Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses.
Chair Administrator Lydia Wilson said Council was pleased to be able to offer this long-term lease arrangement to PRACE, giving them certainty to be able to continue to offer important education services to the community.
“PRACE has been successfully providing vital education and support services for both young people and adults in the City of Whittlesea for a number of years, meeting the growing demand and needs of the local community,” Lydia said.
“PRACE also work closely with local employers and Melbourne Polytechnic, helping students find further study or work and helping to contribute to our strong local economy.”
Consultation on the lease extension was undertaken as part of the Mernda Recreation Reserve Master Planning engagement process late last year, showing support from the community. Further consultation on the next stage of the Master Plan will be undertaken later this year.
