New facilities will help fill trade skills gap

12:00pm Friday 11th January 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

STATE-of-the-art new facilities being built at Kendal College are expected to help to play a big part in plugging a growing skills gap among tradespeople.

A new centre for construction industry trainees is being built as part of a £5.2 million development project at the college - the first major capital investment since the further education establishment was opened in 1971.

Work is progressing on the building project, which covers two separate areas of the college and is being carried out by Carlisle-based Border Construction.

The steel-framed structure for a new three-storey block at the side of the college is due to be put in place over the next few weeks. It will house a new main entrance and reception, and new hairdressing salons for students on the ground floor, with new IT suites and a conference hall on the first floor and a new 450-seat refectory on the top floor - twice the size of the old eating area.

The two new buildings should be ready in time for the next academic year in September 2008, and work will then start on demolishing redundant buildings and completing the remaining external works by March 2009.

For the full story, get the Gazette (January 11, 2008)