Industrial technology training centre planned

Telford College is to develop a £5.6m “world-class” engineering centre to train students in advanced technologies after securing Government backing for the project.

The new Industrial Technology Training Centre, funded by a £4.7m Government grant announced today and £925,000 of Telford College investment, will be developed at the Wellington campus. 

The investment will see a complete refurbishment of W Block, a four-storey building, creating modern engineering laboratories, CAD and digital design suites. The building will be equipped to support courses including additive manufacturing, robotics, automation, cyber systems and drone tech.

Backed by Telford’s advanced manufacturing and engineering employers, the new training centre will create 205 additional study places for 16-to-19-year-olds.

Principal and CEO of Telford College Lawrence Wood said the funding paves the way for the college to deliver on its ambitious plans for inspirational spaces for students to learn.   

“We will create world-class, high-tech engineering facilities to develop the skills of our young people in the technologies of the future. The funding means we can enhance and grow our advanced engineering curriculum to meet the needs of employers. 

“Building on our heritage of engineering we will create inspirational spaces to learn the advanced skills needed today and in the future. Businesses here want to recruit high skilled employees and through the development of our new Industrial Technology Training Centre, we are playing our part in this.  

“Our college sits within a recognised advanced manufacturing cluster – there are 19,000 jobs in Telford & Wrekin alone across sectors such as automotive, aerospace, defence and precision engineering.

“Through this new centre, and our wider provision, we will be training young people to fill these roles. Businesses in Telford have been key to the success of our bid for funding, and I’d like to thank all of the employers for their support and look forward to realising these plans in partnership with them in the near future.” 

The funding is part of a £287 million national programme to expand post-16 education and construction skills capacity, delivered through the Department for Education's Post-16 Capacity Fund.   

It was revealed today as Prime Minister Andy Burnham MP also announced plans which will see year 10 pupils combine core academic subjects with technical training, in a bid to tackle rising youth unemployment nationally.

Lawrence added: “Expanding technical routes and vocation options both at year 10 and post-16 is central to giving more young people a clear path into further study, an apprenticeship or skilled employment, rather than losing them from the system. 

“Our new centre will support growth in T Levels and Level 2 and 3 technical programmes, with progression routes into Higher Technical Qualifications, alongside increased delivery of software development, cyber security and data analytics. It will also open up pathways linked to electrification and low-carbon technologies.”    

The new engineering centre is the latest in a series of major investments at Telford College. It opened a new £2 million library at its Wellington campus earlier this year and is putting the finishing touches to Telford 6th, a £9 million sixth form centre in Station Quarter, which opens to students in September. 

It also recently became a delivery partner in the East and West Midlands Defence Technical Excellence College, part of a £50 million national programme to train the next generation of defence workers.