Leicestershire college lands £18m for agri-tech development

SMB College Group’s Brooksby Campus in Leicestershire is set to receive an £18m investment from the Department for Education to fund a new agri-tech project.

The project will include the construction of an agri-tech centre, designed to support students and apprentices studying a variety of land-based qualifications.

It will feature equipment such as GIS software for field mapping, virtual learning environments, labs, drones and robotics.

The development is part of a broader strategy to expand the campus’s offerings, including the launch of a new T-Level programme in agriculture, land management and production in September 2025.

Dawn Whitemore, principal and CEO of SMB College Group said: “This is a truly transformational project for our Brooksby Campus, and we are incredibly pleased to announce the beginning of construction works for our brand new Agri-tech Centre. We have a rich heritage of delivering Agricultural training for many generations and are very proud of our commitment to offering innovative, forward-thinking qualifications and facilities to train the workforce of the future.

“We’d like to extend our thanks to everyone who has been involved throughout the initial planning phases of this project, and we are excited to keep the community updated going forward as the project progresses. The support that the college has received so far from the teams at the Department for Education and Gleeds has been exceptional, along with Tilbury Douglas who have secured the contract.”

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