Kirklees College has announced it is one of the 39 colleges and sixth forms set to receive a share of a new £83 million Post-16 Capacity Fund to accommodate the expected demographic increase in 16-19-year olds.
The successful bid means that Kirklees College will be able to provide 120 more places for young people to access its Construction provision at the Brunel Construction Centre in Huddersfield.
The Sixth Form Colleges Association estimates that there will be an additional 260,000 16-19-year olds participating in education in the coming years. At the 2020 Spending Review, the Government committed additional capital investment in the education estate to support levelling up education across England.
The Post-16 Capacity Fund was announced by the government in Rishi Sunak’s spending review to help address the need for more places. The project will allow Kirklees College to increase the number of young people it can train and upskill. Young people will increase their skills base and progression will be enabled into new and developing vocational areas such as green technologies with the particular focus on external wall insulation, car charging and low carbon heating installations.
With the government announcement of the 10-point plan for the Green Industrial Revolution and becoming carbon zero by 2050, this project allows for learners to have progression routes from different levels for them to achieve careers in plumbing, electrical and construction.
Palvinder Singh, Principal and Chief Executive at Kirklees College said:
The construction industry will play a leading role in the economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, this sector attracted a high number of migrant workers, however the impact of the pandemic and Brexit this has seen a decline and the skills gap will need to be filled. We hope that the expansion of our provision will help to address these shortages by providing the skills employers need to support futureproof the industry.”
Alex Burghart, Skills Minister said:
“Every young person should have the opportunity to gain the skills they need to reach their goals and go on to have successful careers. This investment will boost capacity so we can make sure there is a place for every 16 to 19-year-old, giving them access to the high-quality learning facilities they need to succeed.”
For more information about Brunel Construction Centre, visit https://www.kirkleescollege.ac.uk/centres-facilities/brunel-construction-centre/.