Plans approved for £10m Burnley college
AN application to build the new £10.1m University Technical College within Burnley’s Weaver’s Triangle redevelopment has been approved by the local council.
The UTC is one of a wave of new technical colleges that gained formal funding approval by the Government last week to provide relevant technical skills for 14-19 year-olds. It will be based at Victoria Mill and will be run by Visions Learning Trust – a body whose lead sponsor Training 2000 works with major local employers including aero engineering firm Safran Aircelle, Rolls Royce plc, Chubb and Fort Vale Engineering.
Steve Gray, chief executive at Training 2000, said: “Having the planning application approved means we can now make our dream of establishing Pennine Lancashire’s first UTC a reality and I’m delighted we are able to get underway with the construction.
“The UTC offers an alternative to traditional education routes and will engage young people through hands-on, vocational learning that will give them a real flavour of what life is like in the world of work.”
Mike Cook, director of economic regeneration at Burnley Borough Council, added: “After a lot of hard work, the innovative and exciting UTC development has now secured planning permission. This is a major step forward that will enable us to very shortly start the work on site.
“The vision is to make Burnley a centre of educational excellence and a regionally significant centre for advanced manufacturing, digital and creative industries.
“The council and all its partners, including Training 2000, are continuing to work at full speed to get the project started and I’m delighted to see progress for the UTC moving forward.”
The conversion of the Victoria Mill site into college space will be undertaken by Nelson-based Barnfield Construction and is set to start on site within the next few weeks. The college is set to open in August 2013.
Gareth Smith, project director at Barnfield, said: “This project epitomises real regeneration and with our partners at Burnley Borough Council we will be able to deliver this exciting project in a short period of time.”
