These nationally recognised qualifications in cleaning operations and management are the training standards in the cleaning industry. The courses are specifically for staff who are working as contract cleaners or in-house cleaners in a variety of settings including retail centres, office blocks, health care and aged care and the industrial sector. Certificate IV is for people who want to be cleaning supervisors, managers or owners of a cleaning business. Students will acquire the knowledge and skills needed to perform team leader/supervisory duties and to undertake and lead specialist cleaning operations. This provides a sound knowledge base for operating a business and managing cleaning contracts. All cleaning courses offer students hands-on practical and technical skills. The higher-level qualifications also focus on management and supervisory skills.
The Gordon Institute of TAFE grew out of the need for technical training in the brave new world of the 1800s industrial age. From its origins as a mechanics institute and a night school for tradespeople, the Gordon has become the embodiment of quality vocational education and training in Geelong and beyond.
During the late 1800s, Geelong's increasing importance as an industrial centre, along with a worrying overseas trend showing Britain was losing its traditional markets to the United States and Europe, spurred leading Geelong citizens to campaign for greater technical training. However, it was another overseas event that hastened the Gordon's development.
The heroic exploits of British general Charles Gordon had captured Geelong's imagination. His death during the siege of Khartoum in Africa prompted calls for a memorial. One proposal, backed by a military battalion brass band, suggested a statue but others wanted something more meaningful. What better memorial could there be, it was said, for a man whose life was devoted to civic duty and, especially, to the education of the disadvantaged, than a vocational institute?
Since opening in 1887, in a single-storied hall and operating mainly night classes for tradespeople, the Gordon has developed into an institution operating across five campuses. The Gordon offers 220 nationally recognised courses in seven teaching schools, as well as 240 specialist courses exploring a wide range of career options. There is an annual enrolment of 26,000 students.