Multi-million pound college plan
Plans for a multi-million pound college investment will be discussed by councillors in Durham next month.
New College Durham recently announced proposals to invest in their campus with a £6million new build project to meet the needs of the local and regional economy.
Durham County Council’s planning committee is expected to look at the plans at a meeting on October 2.
If it gets the go-ahead the new development will focus on ensuring the college has world-class facilities for teaching STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects.
This development has been designed to meet the needs of the local community, which has recently experienced an increase in financial sector jobs.
In addition there is a real need to replace skilled workers who are approaching retirement age and Durham is also set to experience a 10% increase in school leavers between 2019 and 2023.
John Widdowson, principal and chief executive of New College Durham, said: “The new development has been designed to respond to our very specific local and regional economic needs.
“As a college we already have a growing presence in STEM and related subjects including applied science, engineering, construction and the build environment, manufacturing and digital industries.”
In the coming years it’s expected that there will be more of a focus on directing young people into these subjects so they can secure jobs in these growing sectors. It is also anticipated that many of these jobs will be at a higher skills level.
Mr Widdowson, said: “As a college, we’re exceptionally well placed to deliver these subjects to a higher level.
“We have a growing higher education offer with a range of programmes and we have students who start from level 1, 2 or 3 and progress right the way through with us to degree level.
“We work closely with employers when developing our curriculum to ensure that our students have the skills and expertise needed to go into the workplace and succeed.
“We also have flexible study options and offer higher and degree apprenticeships so students can learn the skills on the job, whilst still gaining the qualifications businesses need.”
New College Durham is one of 16 colleges in the country to have been shortlisted to become an Institute of Technology.
“As a college we have a growing presence in STEM subjects” JOHN WIDDOWSON