Journey Management Group training shuts up centre in Warrnambool

Staff at Journey Management Group were told on Friday afternoon the forklift, truck driving and earth-moving training centre was finishing in the city. On Sunday equipment and cars were being loaded onto trucks at Journey’s Strong Street site.

A woman confirmed Journey was “totally closed”, however she did not want to comment further.

Calls to Journey’s Geelong, Ballarat and Warrnambool premises went unanswered and messages were not returned. A student told The Standard he was in the middle of a course.

“I’m concerned as it is a government-funded program,” he said. “I’ve done all my theory but not my practical components. They (Journey staff) rang me Friday to book in my practicals, then Friday night it was shut. I’m very disappointed. It’s a blow for the south-west. From what I’m told the workers were told on Friday afternoon it was finished and told not to come back.”

In 2013 The Standard reported on the company opening in Warrnambool.

At that time the Geelong-based company was confident its million-dollar-plus investment in its new driving training centre would provide a more flexible alternative to the TAFE system.

Journey Management Group founder Shane Blakeborough told attendees at the official opening of the company’s south-west base in 2013 that it was designed to be the most modern training facility in the nation.

“We’ve been training up to 100 people from as far as Horsham and the South Australian border since Christmas and aim to expand to about 150,” he said five years ago.