Leeds City College officially opens Printworks Campus redevelopment

Leeds City College has officially launched its final phase of the redeveloped Printworks Campus.

Located on the city's Hunslet Road, the printhall has undergone a��10 million renovation and was formally opened on Wednesday 24 August by the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Jane Dowson.

Also on hand to mark the occasion were Stephanie Burras, Chair of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Employment & Skills Panel, representatives from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Sandy Needham, Chief Executive of the West and North Yorkshire Chamber.

Priority skills areas

Part of Leeds' South Bank area , the historic development will house more than 1,300 students who will be studying Business, IT, Computer Science and digital technologies from September, which are among Leeds City Region enterprise Partnership's (LEP) priority skills areas. A brand new restaurant and bar, open to the public, will also be based in the building.

The �10m redevelopment was part-funded by a �9m grant from the �1bn Leeds City Region Growth Deal, administered by the LEP. It forms part of the LEP�s �79m Skills Capital investment into Further Education centres across the City Region, which also includes the part-funding of the new Leeds City College Quarry Hill campus. Construction works on this campus began last month.

Prosperous future

Gavin Batty, Director of Curriculum & Operations at Leeds City College, said: �We�re delighted to welcome the first cohort of students into this exciting and innovative learning space next month. Our new facilities are industry standard, set in a location that provides learners with a simulated real life working environment. Our courses aim to equip the next generation of entrepreneurs, IT technicians, programmers and developers with the skills they need for a prosperous future.�

The college has been working closely with the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) to meet the needs of the city and bridge the skills gap.

Globally competitive

Roger Marsh OBE, Chair of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP), said: �Creating a globally competitive City Region economy starts with providing world-class education facilities, and that is what Local Growth Deal funding has helped to make happen at the Printworks Campus. By investing �9m into this redevelopment, the LEP is helping to develop the right skills for future growth in our priority skills bases of digital, ICT, hotel and catering so that every job created helps our economy to flourish.

�I hope the excellent facilities provided at the redeveloped Printworks encourages even more young people to think big and create a positive future for them and the City Region.�

Judith Blake, Leader of Leeds City Council, said: �This wonderful Grade II listed building is part of the proud industrial heritage of the area, so we�re delighted to see it brought back in to life as part of Leeds City College�s Printworks Campus. It is fantastic that it will be used to help young people learn and develop their skills as part of the vibrant education quarter of the South Bank to be accessed by 10,000 students every day.�

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