TUC Learning Community (TLC)
What is the TLC Project?
TLC is a place-based project that aims to address barriers that prevent individuals from pursuing personal growth and higher education.
This includes: lack of confidence and self-belief; disconnection from mentors, supporters and peers; limited access to technology and safe spaces; and micro-cultural or socio-cultural environments that may not support endeavours of self-improvement.
Purpose & Goals
Goals of this Project
The TLC Project recognises that an individual's relationship with education is shaped by their personal circumstances and social and cultural influences — not simply by access to technology and study support. The project is designed to:
Cultivate and promote local resilience, wellbeing, and social connectedness.
Activate a culture and network for higher learning across the Mid Coast LGA.
Develop a sense of place and community ownership at 2 Pulteney St, Taree — TUC's permanent home.
Prepare the ground for establishing a dynamic and growing regional centre for a 'learning community' and higher education hub.
The overarching goal is to develop a vibrant learning community that celebrates collaboration, self-improvement and lifelong learning — one where all residents feel welcome, safe, respected and supported to explore their own potential.
The vision is for the residents of Taree and the greater Mid Coast to see themselves as part of a large, vibrant community that celebrates learning, creative expression and engagement with culture — initiating a cultural shift that becomes a self-fulfilling legacy for the region.
Status & Funding
Initiatives developed in association with this funding ran from August 2022 and concluded in May 2024. This Project was supported by the NSW Government and funded under the joint Australian Government – NSW Government Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements 2018.
This project seeded many concepts that were then expanded into larger projects thereafter, including the Human Library, Tastes & Tales, CareerQuip and Beats on the Bank.
Mode of Delivery
The project is delivered through three key areas:
#1. Placemaking at 2 Pulteney Street: Creating a physical place where all residents feel welcome. The transformation of the former MidCoast Council Administrative Building into an education hub is significant in itself: shifting from a place of governance to a place of collaboration, community and growth. Physical spaces will respond to the needs of:
Diverse group spaces for animated discussion and collaboration, both private and public.
Quiet study spaces for individual learning and development.
Workshop environments for sharing knowledge and developing practical skills.
A Yarning Circle, developed in consultation with the Biripi community, for sharing stories, history and culture.
An Elders meeting place for Indigenous community leaders to meet, offer support and guidance.
An Aboriginal cultural centre and keeping place for local cultural artefacts.
Art, murals and sculptural elements reflecting the diverse creativity of the region, both Indigenous and individual.
#2. Community Ownership: For the space to succeed, it must feel like more than 'a place' — it needs to feel intrinsically like 'our place', encouraging ownership of what the place stands for: discussing, debating, sharing, learning and growing together. "That's what we do 'round here."
#3. Culture of Learning: With TLC initiatives also taking place outside the 2 Pulteney Street location (at socially relevant spaces such as the Manning Entertainment Centre and Manning River Foreshore), the project signals that this culture extends beyond the Hub's doors. It is a culture of the region, wherever its inherent values are celebrated.
Events Delivered As Part Of The TLC Project
![[POSTPONED] Beats on the Bank Workshop: Sound & Lighting Technology with MSR Entertainment](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5de4e3e0cfe3303ffc208ac6/1701060967516-QVRGD8JNNERB3Y1Y33DS/BOTB+-+Sound+and+Lighting+Workshop+-+Social+Post.png)
Intended Audience
The project is not aimed at serving a particular segment of the Mid Coast in isolation — it is about developing a cultural shift across the region as a whole. However, the following target audiences have been identified:
First Nations People
Essential Workers
Children and Young People
Those Experiencing Compound Disasters (drought, bushfires, floods, COVID-19)
Those in Direct Contact with COVID-19
Rural and Remote Communities
Common needs and barriers across these groups include:
disconnection with place and a lack of a safe space to learn;
inability to envision a more prosperous future;
absence of voices speaking to new ideas and alternative pathways;
falling into 'survival mode' in the wake of compounding stress and trauma;
recovering from loss, illness or displacement; and
isolation due to physical distance.
Partners & Collaborators
Key Collaborators and Partners:
Headspace Taree
Mid North Coast Community College
Manning Regional Art Gallery
Aboriginal Education Consultative Group, Taree
Local schools
MidCoast Council
Biripi community leaders and Elders
Pastor Russell Saunders OAM, Biripi Elder and TUC Board Member
Metrics for Success
Success is measured through the three compounding outcomes the project aims to achieve:
Placemaking: Successful development of 2 Pulteney Street as a welcoming, community-centred education hub with diverse functional spaces (group spaces, quiet study, workshops, Yarning Circle, Elders meeting place, cultural centre and keeping place).
Community Ownership: Evidence that residents feel a sense of ownership over the space — that it is perceived as 'our place' rather than simply 'a place'.
Culture of Learning: Evidence that the culture of collaboration, self-improvement and lifelong learning extends beyond the Hub and is embraced across the broader region.
Additionally, the project is working towards the development of a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) as a key outcome, building on existing participation from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents and the guidance of Pastor Russell Saunders OAM.
