Funding to expand training facilities in colleges

Local colleges are set to receive £570 million in government funding to expand training facilities in areas such as construction and engineering.

This is part of £283 million government funding to help the UK meet surging demand for homegrown skilled workers.

Around £100 million of this funding will go to mayors and local leaders to boost capacity specifically in construction courses to address growing college waiting lists across the country and help achieve the government’s goal to train 60,000 additional construction workers to build 1.5 million homes by the end of the Parliament.

Metro mayors and local leaders will be given the power to decide how they use the rest of the funding to boost capacity in colleges ahead of an expected 67,000 extra 16- and 17-year-olds entering post-16 education by 2028. This means communities can create training opportunities to rejuvenate local economies and provide British people with pathways to good jobs, driving national renewal and ensuring every young person, no matter their background, is given the chance to succeed.

It comes as applications open for colleges to bid to become a Technical Excellence College (TEC) in one of the government’s priority Industrial Strategy sectors: advanced manufacturing, clean energy, defence and digital and technologies. 

The 19 TECs, announced in the government’s Post 16 Education and Skills White Paper, add to the 10 already launched for the construction sector, which will train 40,000 construction learners by 2029.

The TECs will break down barriers to opportunity and deliver the gold standard pathways young people deserve, helping the government to reach the Prime Minister’s target for two thirds of young people to be in higher level learning by age 25.

Skills Minister Jacqui Smith said: "Our plan for national renewal gives young people the skills they need to get on in life while delivering the homes and infrastructure our country desperately needs."

T Level providers are also set to benefit from an £8.8 million capital funding boost for specialist industry-standard equipment for high priority areas, giving students access to the same technology used in industry.