North Melbourne Institute of TAFE Greensborough campus to close: local MP THE Greensborough campus of the North Melbourne Institute of TAFE is slated to close, Eltham State MP Steve Herbert says. About 450 students will have to complete their degrees at Collingwood or Preston campuses if the Greensborough campus closes next year. Mr Herbert, the state opposition spokesman for education, told Leader he had confirmed the closure with chief executive Andrew Giddy this afternoon. He said Dr Giddy told him the decision was made because of funding cuts and NMIT was considering buying the Swinburne University campus at Prahran. But NMIT spokesman James Gardener said the decision to sell the campus was due to a decline in student interest rather than state government funding cuts. He said many students found it difficult to get to Greensborough on public transport, preferring to attend campuses closer to the city. "It's difficult to maintain viable student numbers at the campus," he said. Mr Gardener said there was a private investor interested in purchasing the site but the TAFE was still in early discussions. Swinburne's Twitter account confirms the university is in talks with NMIT about the sale. It quoted the Vice Chancellor Professor Linda Kristjanson as saying if negotiations were successful Swinburne would be in a better position in invest in its Hawthorn, Croydon and Wantirna campuses. Mr Herbert said the closure was a blow for education access in the northern suburbs, and very sad. The decision comes two weeks after the TAFE said it would be unlikely to receive any of the State Government's $200 million boost. Mr Giddy sent a letter to students this afternoon to say the TAFE was trying to sell the campus. "NMIT has entered into early discussions with a private investor regarding the change of use and the potential sale of its Greensborough campus," Mr Giddy wrote. If these discussions lead to a successful outcome then it is highly likely that all Greensborough courses will relocate to other NMIT campuses in 2014. You might be completing your course this year and so this news will not affect you. However should you decide to pursue further studies with NMIT in the future, I'm sure there will be a course that suits you at one of our other campuses. Courses run at Greensborough include horticulture, design and drafting.