On Tuesday 29th September, Colchester Institute officially opened a new Sustainable Construction Centre following a £5m building transformation project.
Part-funded through capital grants received from Department for Education and Essex County Council, the College has worked with a range of partners to successfully repurpose a 1960’s teaching block to create a modern construction training facility. Supporting over 250 learners this year across three multi-purpose workshops, a large dedicated painting and decorating suite, there will also be three classrooms for theory and technical learning across a range of disciplines including plant driver training.
The project was seen as an essential step towards delivering additional capacity as a result of unprecedented growth in student numbers at the College over the past few years.
Gary Horne MBE, Deputy Chief Executive said “We are passionate about technical skills delivery, and we are delighted to realise another very important milestone in our Colchester Campus accommodation masterplan. As the largest provider of construction training in the region, this provides us with more scope to expand our offer further, and we are very grateful to our funders and sponsors for making this possible as we realise how critical it is from an economic growth perspective to be able to supply the skilled workers needed to deliver on local regional and national housebuilding and infrastructure plans.”
The launch was attended by local and regional construction companies, along with representatives from Essex County Council and other employers and stakeholders.
Councillor Peter Harris, Leader of Essex County Council said, “Essex County Council has invested £1.9 million in the creation of Colchester Institute’s new construction training facility. Combined with matched funding from private sector partners, this investment demonstrates the power of public and private organisations working together to address our skills needs and support economic growth in Essex.
The construction sector is critical to our economic growth. With demand for skilled construction workers continuing to grow, this centre will help train the workforce needed to deliver housing, infrastructure and development projects across the county. Our investment reflects our commitment to ensuring that residents have access to high-quality training so that they can secure good-quality local jobs. By investing in skills today, we are helping to build the workforce that will drive Essex’s future growth.”
The new facility will provide specialist learning, supporting continued local demand for construction training and helping learners develop the practical and technical skills required by employers
The new facility boasts a significant improvement on the operational efficiency as the design incorporates air source heat pumps, photovoltaic (PV) solar panels and a rainwater harvesting system supporting various plans underpinning the College’s sustainability strategy.
Stuart Cadman, Managing Director at Cadman Construction, the main project contractor said, “Colchester Institute are at the forefront of construction training in the Eastern region, and it gives Cadman’s the greatest of pleasure being involved with such a successful education provider. Our workforce is putting their skills gained at Colchester Institute, back into the College and therefore directly benefitting today’s construction students, who are the future of our industry.”
