Stoke on Trent College officially launches its Construction Skills Hub and unveils its new Advanced Construction Centre

The official launch event for the College’s Construction Skills Hub, as part of its new strategy – Skills Ready, Future Ready, was held on Tuesday 5^th March. As part of this, the College officially opened its new Advanced Construction Centre at the College’s Burslem Campus in Stoke-on-Trent.

The Construction Skills Hub brings together the industry-standard facilities, expertise and equipment that can be found at the College’s Burslem Campus. It responds to the skills needs set out in the new government Local Skills Improvement Plan led by the Chambers of Commerce.

The new Advanced Construction Centre has been funded by the Government T Level capital programme and provides a collaborative, modern and open-plan learning space to support the development of innovative construction skills.

Part of the College’s Construction Skills Hub, the new facilities have allowed the College to provide sector leading advanced and digital construction facilities for students in the City – helping them to gain the skills they need to meet the both current and future skill demands in the region.

Around 60 guests were invited to attend the launch event, including representatives from the region’s leading construction businesses, stakeholders and education partners.

Peter Lauener, Chair of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) cut the ribbon to mark the launch. College partner and national concrete-cast business Thorp Precast delivered a presentation on developing skills in advanced construction technologies, highlighting the successful relationship they have with the College, having recently appointed a college student as their first Apprentice Site Supervisor.

Guests were treated to a showcase of students’ work from T Level and Apprenticeship programmes, including the opportunity to see a range of drone-based activities now being used in the construction industry. They also met ‘Spot’, a large four-legged Mobot developed by Boston Dynamics and displayed at the event by Melvin Penwill of Korec. Spot is designed to survey and navigate various environments and performs a range of tasks either under a programme or by using a remote control. Panasonic, a partner to the College displayed the green technologies supporting the curriculum at the College.

Lisa Capper MBE, Principal & CEO at Stoke on Trent College, said

“After months of hard work, we are excited to officially unveil our new Advanced Construction Centre.  Our new state-of-the-art facility is a game changer in equipping young people and those working in the industry with cutting edge technology. The Skills Hub will provide innovative learning to help lead the construction training revolution through delivering forward-thinking projects to support the future success of our regional construction industries.”

She added, “The student showcase showed the engagement of young people in the industry and we are excited about the partnership with the employers in the region. The new facilities and equipment will not only enhance the education and experiences of our current students, but also those who attend the College for many years to come, ensuring all of our learners leave us ‘skills ready, future ready’.”

Peter Lauener, Chair of CITB, commented: 

“There is a large demand for skills, and especially new technical and higher-level skills in the construction industry. The Construction Skills Hub is a beacon for developing the skills pipeline needed in Stoke-on-Trent and the surrounding area and I am pleased to see the College moving forward so effectively to attract employer investment in the area.”

Stoke on Trent College will also be expanding its curriculum offering in this area to include the introduction of new T Levels and HTQ (Higher Technical Qualifications) across all four of its Sector Skills Hubs, designed to enable students to gain skills at advanced and higher levels, to help students’ progress on to university or employment as well as meeting local skills needs.