By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
Nottingham College is planning to build a new centre to teach construction skills to around 180 students every year due to growing demand in the sector.
The new facility has been proposed on the site of the existing Basford campus in Nuthall Road.
Plans reveal the college is seeking permission to build a two-storey centre featuring a construction workshop, as well as three additional classrooms, a smaller modern construction workshop and staff facilities.
Planning documents submitted to Nottingham City Council say: “There has been very high demand for construction courses over a number of years, placing considerable pressure on the existing construction skills workshops
on the Basford campus.
“To accommodate this demand the college has utilised a number of external marquees, however these uninsulated spaces lack access to general teaching spaces for teaching theory, as well as a lack of support facilities such as changing and WCs.
“The college’s preferred estate strategy is therefore to seek to create additional specialist capacity at the Basford campus to provide a permanent solution to meet this demand.
“This project forms a key part of this strategy, with the proposed new facility replacing two existing marquees located on the Basford campus service yard.
The new site, if approved, will accommodate 170 to 180 students aged 16 to 18 over an academic year.
Only 60 students will be present on site at any one term, alongside two additional staff members.
It comes after Nottingham College recently secured funding for the construction of a specialist centre on the Basford Campus for Students with Learning Difficulties and Disabilities.
The plans for the centre were approved in April this year and it is due to be completed in 2024.
Nottingham College also expanded its EMTEC centre on its Ruddington campus following a £400,000 Government grant, to allow training in the de-carbonisation of vehicles, including technical training in electric and hydrogen variants of modern cars.
Its new city-based hub also opened in 2021.
The new construction skills centre in Basford will help the college meet growing demand for its construction courses.
Planning documents add: “The college has sought to meet this demand through the use of existing marquees on the site, however these do not offer the optimum learning experience for users.
“To meet the planned learner numbers within the construction department, the college have therefore identified a requirement for provision of an additional construction skills workshop.”
