First class bid leads to new University Technical School for City

Plymouth has received a resounding endorsement for a bid that will see it awarded considerable funding to create a brand new type of school that will focus on technical subjects for 14 to 19 year olds.

After an impressive joint bid with the force of Plymouth University, City College Plymouth and Plymouth City Council behind it, with backing from major employers like Babcock and Princess Yachts International, the city will join an exclusive list of locations in the country to receive Government funding to open a University Technical College (UTC).

UTCs are a new government initiative aimed at offering pupils the chance to take a highly regarded, technically orientated form of study in a school equipped and run to industrial standards. The schools are local business sponsored and offer clear progression routes into either higher education or higher-level apprenticeships with an employer and improved chances of employment.

Plymouth will be one of only 16 cities in the country to have a new state-of-the-art UTC that will primarily focus on marine engineering, advanced manufacturing and other specialist subjects as well as innovation and enterprise, now said to be the future of the UK’s economy and industry.

A plan was submitted on 1 June with details of where the school will be located, how it will be marketed and how it will be governed. This was the second stage in a rigorous bidding process to select those locations to receive funding for 28 UTCs in England and Wales by 2014. It is understood that Plymouth was one of 40 cities to get through to the final stage of bidding in what was a fierce competition for the cash.

Viv Gillespie, Principal at City College Plymouth says: “We are delighted to be chosen as one of the few cities in the country to get funding for a UTC. The strength of our bid lies in the excellent partnership working at its core. We made a very persuasive case for the city and now look forward to working together to turn our plans into a reality.”

UTC-Plymouth, as it may be named, will offer pupils specialist subjects of study including science, technology, engineering and maths in fields such as marine engineering and advanced manufacturing, with a strong enterprise and innovation focus that would encourage young entrepreneurs. These lessons will be complimented by a wide range of extra curricula activities, including modern foreign languages such as Chinese Mandarin that reflect the crucial international nature of technology industries of the future.

Professor Wendy Purcell, Vice-Chancellor of Plymouth University said: “The Plymouth UTC brings together education and business across the city. It draws upon our spirit of discovery and strong links with the marine and maritime industry. The UTC will offer young people the opportunity to train in marine engineering, and develop the type of highly desirable skills that the economy is looking for. Plymouth University is committed to enterprise and working in partnership to support growth of the regional economy creating opportunities for skilled people to play a valuable role in society.”

The chosen site for the new UTC is the former Parkside School site in Devonport, which has the potential to be refurbished to meet the specific needs of the school and its students. Other sites in Devonport were considered but ruled out through the bidding process. Once refurbished, the school will accommodate over 450 students with a catchment area of the whole of Plymouth into South East Cornwall and parts of Devon including Ivybridge and Tavistock.

Young people with a keen interest in technology, science or maths subjects will be able to opt to join the UTC at the point of studying for GCSEs where 60 percent of their lessons would be National Curriculum based and 40 percent specialist learning.

Leader of the Council, Vivien Pengelly, said: “This is such wonderful news for Plymouth and its young people. We are very proud to be creating educational opportunities that clearly respond to the latest economic demands. Our UTC will help us nurture our own home-grown talent that will foster growth and regeneration in the city.”

UTC bids are being coordinated by the Baker Dearing Trust, headed up by Lord Baker and together with the Department for Education and the Young People’s Learning Agency are responsible for judging the bids. There are currently two UTCs in operation in the country - the JCB Academy in Staffordshire, and the Black Country UTC in Walsall with two more on the way in Greenwich and Aston.

Plymouth aims to open its UTC by September 2013.

Pictured right (from left): Gerry Cadogan, Chair of Board of Governors, City College Plymouth; Vivien Pengelly, Leader of Plymouth City Council; Lord Baker; Professor Mary Watkins, Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Plymouth University; Brian Warren, UTC project leader; Bronwen Lacey, Director of Children's Services, Plymouth City Council; Professor Wendy Purcell, Vice-Chancellor, Plymouth University.