New higher education centre on Teesside

A major new higher education development in collaboration with Teesside University opens its doors.

The £3.94m Higher Education Centre at Redcar & Cleveland College will offer the opportunity for students from Redcar and beyond to study for accredited degree level courses in an environment specifically developed to meet their needs.

The centre has been developed in collaboration with two key partners, Teesside University and the Sir William Turner Foundation, who have provided the funding in order to see the project through to fruition.

Teaching will focus on courses from within the emerging science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) sector, as well as the built environment, business and management, care, counselling and health, computing, engineering, sport and teacher education and learner support.

Principal of Redcar & Cleveland College, Gary Groom, said of the centre: 'The opening of Redcar & Cleveland College’s Higher Education Centre marks an important step for the provision of education and training in the borough.

.By working with our supporters, The Sir William Turner Foundation and Teesside University, we have delivered a learning environment that goes beyond anything you would normally expect to find within a further education college.

'It will now be easier than ever for our students to progress through the college to obtain degree level qualifications and we are also looking forward to working with local business and industry to meet their training needs.

Filling the future needs of employers 'Our focus for the centre is firmly upon providing the kind of courses that will be key in filling the future skills needs of employers within the region and it is great to see so many of our industry leaders here today to share the opening with us.'

State-of-the-art equipment, including the latest computer aided design software, robotics, biometric and 3D technology, will be installed in the centre’s classrooms and workshops, ensuring that students receive their training using the most cutting edge facilities available.

Chair of the Redcar & Cleveland College Board of Governors, John Coulthard, added: 'What we have achieved with the higher education centre builds upon our already world class Phase 1 development, which opened in 2008.

'Without the backing of the Sir William Turner Foundation and Teesside University, it would have been impossible for us to deliver a project of this high standard. We are delighted that they have worked with us throughout the process to help us achieve our vision.'

Professor Graham Henderson, Teesside University’s Vice-Chancellor, said: 'The University has been working in partnership with Redcar & Cleveland College for many years, to improve access and progression to higher education for the people of Redcar and Cleveland, to the point where the College is now one of our most important, and valued, strategic partners.

'We are therefore delighted that, together, we have been able to take the major step of creating an outstanding new higher education centre within the college – which is a visible tribute to our joint, long term commitment to making higher education as accessible as possible.'

Peter Chester, a Sir William Turner Foundation Governor and former history lecturer at the College, said: 'The College, the University and the Sir William Turner Foundation have come together to invest in a building which represents a new vision for this College, the town and the local community, and we are pleased to be part of this.

'Although we associate Sir William Turner's name with education and prestigious schools in the twentieth century, he was very much a practical, 'skills-based' man, and he would have much appreciated the focus of much of the work of the modern Redcar & Cleveland College. We share Sir William Turner's vision that education is beneficial to all and I think he would recognise today that we have invested his legacy wisely.'

He added: 'The motto of the old Coatham School and Sir William Turner's Grammar School was 'Floreat Domus' - 'May the House Flourish' and I cannot think of a more appropriate good wish for this new higher education centre.'

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