University steps in to “rescue” college

0

WARRINGTON’S proposed £10 million University Training College is back on track after a new sponsor stepped in to take the place of the University of Chester, who pulled out last month because of mounting costs.
Manchester Metropolitan University(MMU) has now been named as new sponsor of the UTC which is due to open in September 2016.
The announcement removes a question mark which had been hanging over the project since the Chester pull out.
It came from University Technical College Warrington (UTCW) Trust who said MMU would provide “lead sponsorship”.
University Technical Colleges (UTCs) are Government-funded colleges that offer 14-19 year olds an alternative education to that of traditional schools. They teach students technical and academic subjects in an innovative and creative way within a work-based context and aim to educate the inventors, engineers, scientists and technicians of tomorrow.
UTCW will specialise in energy and engineering and will offer an outstanding opportunity for the young people of Warrington and the wider region to work with major energy and engineering employers based in the town, including Sellafield Ltd, National Nuclear Laboratories, AMEC Foster Wheeler, Tenet Consultants, Nuvia, Atkins and Flamefast to name a few.
Plans for UTCW have already been approved on the site of the former Dallam Day Centre, in the town centre.
Education chiefs had to push the opening date back following a number of setbacks, including the resignation of the original principal and the Chester University pull-out.
UTCW will address the specific skills gap as identified by employers in engineering and energy skills in the findings of the Warrington Skills Commission (2012).
Construction of the futuristic looking facility will commence in the coming weeks and sit adjacent to the complementary Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering Business Incubator under construction and set to open in September next year.
A spokesperson for UCTW Trust said: “Whilst we were sorry that University of Chester felt unable to continue with the project, all partners are absolutely delighted to have Manchester Metropolitan University on board. Their swift decision to step in to support UTC W is a great endorsement of the project and of Warrington and its ambitions. We are looking forward to working with MMU and developing this superb opportunity for the benefit of the young people of Warrington and the town in general.”
Dr Georgina Harris, head of the School of Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “We are delighted to be joining the Engineering and Energy University Technical College, Warrington, and we recognise the importance of the advanced engineering sector to the local economy.
“Energy is a vital engineering sector for the UK’s future power security. Ensuring that we have the expertise and skills necessary to design, develop, commission, run and decommission power generation and distributions systems in the UK will be key to this plan.
“The University’s world-class expertise in generation and smart grid technologies, thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, stress and structural analysis, and the advanced computational methods associated with these disciplines means that we are ideally placed to work with our Warrington industrial partners on the development of this UTC.
“We believe the UTC will meet the needs of the young people of Warrington and will help students to thrive in the engineering and energy sectors, ready to tackle the industrial challenges of tomorrow.”
The announcement was welcomed by Warrington South Labour Parliamentary candidate Nick Bent who sat in on the crucial meeting between MMU, Warrington Borough Council and the business community.
He said: “I’m pleased to have helped deliver an impressive new sponsor for the UTC, which will offer a ladder of opportunity for Warrington students to good jobs with some of the best employers in town.”
Microsoft Word - DMCPicture: An artist’s impression of the new college.


0 Comments
Share.

About Author

Experienced journalist for more than 40 years. Managing Director of magazine publishing group with three in-house titles and on-line daily newspaper for Warrington. Experienced writer, photographer, PR consultant and media expert having written for local, regional and national newspapers. Specialties: PR, media, social networking, photographer, networking, advertising, sales, media crisis management. Chair of Warrington Healthwatch Director Warrington Chamber of Commerce Patron Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace. Trustee Warrington Disability Partnership. Former Chairman of Warrington Town FC.

Leave A Comment