A COLLEGE, which has invested £2m in a new state of the art construction zone, opened its doors to learners offering them the chance to build on their education.
Darlington College welcomed hundreds of Year 11 students from Newton Aycliffe, Shildon, Darlington and North Yorkshire inspiring them with a ‘Have a Go’ open evening.
The event, which was kicked off by Nike free styling footballer Al Johnson, who was promoting the college’s extended diploma in sports programme, gave pupils and their parents the opportunity to interact with a variety of programme areas.
A host of expert tutors were on hand to offer advice and information on both full-time, part-time courses and apprenticeships available after leaving school.
These included motor vehicle, engineering, travel and tourism, plumbing, electrical, construction, hospitality and catering, hairdressing and beauty therapy, art, media, journalism, sport, counselling, computing, uniformed public services, business management, and childcare.
Head of Construction Gary Potts said: “It is a very exciting time to be a student at Darlington College.
“Our new construction zone will be completed in the next couple of months and will ensure that we can provide young people with industry standard skills.
“We have redesigned, refitted and enlarged our workshops for bricklaying, joinery, painting and decorating, plastering, plumbing and electrical installation work as well as creating new conference rooms, a computer suite, a gas assessment centre and a green energy room.
“We have focussed heavily on embedding health and safety into the build and by integrating a portal, through which all students must pass to equip themselves, we hope to prepare them for the demands of working on a real construction site.”
With a raft of capital build projects planned for Darlington, including new housing developments, a cinema and leisure complex and the new Department for Education offices, Gary believes that there will be a real need for skilled workers in the town.
“In the last few years, because of the recession, we have seen a drop in the number of people coming in to the construction industry,” he said.
“But now you only have to look to the end of the college road to see one of a number of new building projects starting in the town and we need to be equipping our students and apprentices with the skills to service this growing industry.
“There is a trade for everyone in construction, from hands on plumbing, decorating, building and electrical work, to taking an extended diploma in construction that can lead to a degree in civil engineering and careers as far reaching as a structural engineer or an architect.”
As well as a the new construction zone the college has also developed a hi-tech teaching and learning centre, a facility for catering students, classrooms for academic teaching, a science lab and outdoor recreation space, including a five-a-side all weather pitch, outdoor learning area, sensory garden and outdoor gym.
