26.03.14
MMU spearheads Crewe bid for High Speed Rail College
Plans to bring the new national High Speed Rail College to Crewe are being spearheaded and submitted by Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) in partnership with Reaseheath and South Cheshire Colleges.
The two have put forward plans to base the new training college at its campus on Crewe Green Road, and the partners say they can provide the engineering “excellence, training and skills” needed to deliver HS2.
Earlier this month the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills stated that it was gathering information to help make a decision on where the main site for a new high speed rail college would be best located to meet its aims. A final decision on the preferred location is expected in June 2014, and the college is expected to open in 2017.
It was also stated that the “college will be an important part of the government’s strategy for providing a national high speed rail network for Britain”. It will concentrate on designing and delivering the high level skills needed for high speed rail and other major engineering projects of the future, including HS2.
The MMU bid also has the backing of the local authorities, business associations and the Local Enterprise Partnership. MMU pro vice chancellor and bid leader Dennis Dunn said: “This new elite national college should be at Crewe which is a HS2 hub already announced by government.
“We have the expertise, skills base and capacity amongst the Colleges and University, together with strong backing from business, industry and Cheshire East Council, to present a very compelling case to government.”
However, the MMU proposal is one of a number of bids being submitted for potential consideration, with a consortium of colleges from Birmingham, Staffordshire and Worcestershire putting in a bid, and York has also expressed interest.
Skills and enterprise minister Matthew Hancock MP said: “The new college will also form strong partnerships with other providers through a ‘hub and spoke’ model which will supply the skills needed for HS2, and the wider rail industry, and provide strong progression routes for learners.
“Selecting a site for the new college will be the first important step in its creation, and I am asking those parties interested in locating the college in their area to respond to the consultation.”
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