Construction begins on technical college at one of Britain’s biggest airports

BREAKING NEW GROUND: The crowd at Stansted Airport

Last week, the Minister of State for Climate Change and Industry, Claire Perry MP, visited London Stansted Airport to see construction begin on a new technical college.

The £11m Stansted Airport College, designed by Pascall+Watson, is the first on-site college of its kind at any major UK airport and is a joint venture between Harlow College and London Stansted.

When the college opens in time for the 2018 autumn term, it will aim to boost the skills of students in the region and provide a pipeline of future talent for the airport and the 200 plus on-site companies.

The college will welcome more than 500 students each year and offer courses designed to bridge the skills gap in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects as well as specific airport areas such as aircraft and airport engineering, business studies, logistics and supply chain management, asset management, hospitality and customer service.

The college provide skilled on-site workers and training opportunities for young people in the regional community surrounding the airport.

Karen Spencer, Principal and Chief Executive of Harlow College said: “We are delighted to be working with London Stansted on the UK’s first airport college. Further education colleges are central to delivering high quality technical skills and improving the country’s economic productivity.

“As a college, we firmly believe that working jointly with employers strengthens our curriculum and also provides a clearer line of sight to the workplace for young people. We genuinely believe our strapline – Not Just Courses, Careers.”

Ms Perry took the opportunity at Stansted Airport to announce the UK Government’s new industrial  strategy.

She said: “Today we have launched our new, modern Industrial Strategy which aims to help young people develop the skills to do the high-paid, high-skilled jobs of the future. 

“The new college here at Stansted is a prime example of our Industrial Strategy in action. Public and private sector working together to improve the skills of young people and delivering a pipeline of talent that will boost the local economy.”

Brad Miller, London Stansted’s Chief Operating Officer, added: “Today is an exciting day for both the airport and the region and we are delighted that the Minister was able to join us all at London Stansted and witness first-hand the role this initiative will play in delivering the Government’s Industrial Strategy.

“The Stansted Airport College is a great example of the private and public sector working together on behalf of our region to try to deliver part of the solution to a very real problem.

“As a rapidly growing and ambitious airport and employer of 12,000 people, it is vital for us to develop and retain the right talent and skills.

“The airport sits within an area of low unemployment so it can often be challenging for companies to fill vacancies across our site. The aim of the project is to help address the growing skills gap in engineering, hospitality and customer service across our region, develop talent and provide more opportunities for local people to join us as we play an ever more critical role in providing UK runway capacity over the next decade.”