College changes hands as ‘recovery plan’ begins

Harrogate College has officially joined the Luminate Education Group as it implements its five year recovery plan.

It was previously part of the troubled Hull College Group, which announced plans to offload Harrogate College in April as part of its five year “restructuring plan”.

The transfer to the new group – which includes Leeds City College, Keighley College, Leeds College of Music and the White Rose Academies Trust – has now been completed.

Lydia Devenny, Deputy Chief Executive of Luminate Education Group, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Harrogate College to one of the largest education providers in the north.

“We’re hopeful that our collective expertise and best practice will allow the college to continue growing, provide excellent education and play a pivotal role in the local community.”

The plans were assessed and approved by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and the Further Education (FE) Commissioner.

Hull College Group hit the headlines recently over its financial troubles. It received the biggest amount in restructuring grants – a total of £34,187,000 – from the ESFA last year to support its ‘fresh start’ arrangement and to help its “significant financial and operational turnaround”.

The college said in its 2016/17 accounts, which were published almost 18 months late, that it had overspent £10m that year, FE Week reported.

Its 2017/18 accounts showed a surplus in the year of £22m, which was “in respect of restructuring costs”.

In March last year, the college said 230 jobs were at risk due to the restructure.