Investment to be ploughed into Humber colleges
FIVE Humber Colleges will see a rapid programme of investment to create a Humber Energy Skills Centre of Excellence.
Bishop Burton College, East Riding College, Hull College Group, Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education and North Lindsey College are working with the Humber LEP through the Hull and Humber City Deal process to develop the Humber campus.
The first phase, totalling £3.1m (£1.245m of FE capital funding won by the Humber LEP through the city deal, matched by £1.9m from the colleges) will see a programme of capital works at the sites to improve and establish training facilities linked to the expanding renewables sector.
This will offer local people better access to education and jobs by supporting approximately 1,500 additional learning opportunities for adults over three years.
Future phases will involve work with colleges, private training providers and the University of Hull to ensure that the Humber has the skills and training facilities to support the sector. The work is being led by the LEP’s Employment and Skills Board, which is made up of business and education leaders.
Mike Parker, chair of the Humber LEP Employment and Skills Board, said: “This is the first step towards creating a Humber-wide campus that can become a recognised centre of excellence for energy skills. As the UK’s energy estuary the Humber is already the leading location for renewables businesses to invest, but we want to make sure our training offer leads the field as well.
“The renewables sector in the region has a huge boost with planning permission being granted for the 4,000-job Able Marine Energy Park and these facilities will help with these jobs and others that will be created in the future linked to renewables and linked industries.
“The freedoms, flexibilities and funding allowed by the deal means we can make sure we have the right courses and support for local people to be trained into jobs while supporting those businesses that are here and those who invest here.”
Bishop Burton College will create a sustainable technologies centre with the focus on environmental technologies, mathematics, bio sciences, engineering and innovation. The centre will include bespoke IT, virtual labs and flexible teaching space. The project will increase numbers by 150 full time FE students, 80 HE students and 55 apprentices who will develop technical and employability skills in the energy sector qualifying them for a whole range of green careers.
East Riding College is building its Environmental Technologies Centre to provide specialised equipment for the regional energy sector, including full-sized training rigs for the installation and maintenance of solar, thermal and photovoltaic technology.
Hull College Group is creating welding and fabrication centres of excellence in both Goole and Hull with the procurement of virtual welding facilities and the refurbishment of practical welding workshops. The project will more than double the capacity to deliver training with more than 750 places by 2023 as well as increasing the quality of the programmes allowing the college to take a leading role in welding and fabrication to up-skill the current workforce and get people into work.
North Lindsey College in Scunthorpe will be creating an engineering centre and a digital hub that will raise the skill level of the region’s employees and Grimbsy Institute of Further and Higher Education is investing in creating an Environmental Technologies Centre taking in a range of environmental technologies to underpin expansion in apprenticeships, technical programmes and new Foundation Degrees.
