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Swindon College is delighted to announce that they have been successful in the £21 million bid for the Government backed Institute of Technology.

Steve Wain, Principal stated:
“We are absolutely delighted to receive this news.  I would like to congratulate and thank all those colleagues and anchor partners who worked so hard in supporting, preparing and delivering the applications as part of the bid and for making this such a success.   We were in fierce competition with 130 Colleges at the start of the process and through the bid stages we progressed to the final interview stage and are one of only 12 winning groups. Today’s news is incredibly positive. This is a significant development and the £21 million investment will allow us to train over 1000 students and apprentices in higher level STEM based subjects. "

The project is crucial in helping to support the vision and continued focus on developing opportunities and growth for Swindon, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire. 

Timings for the project are being reviewed to enable us to work with the Department for Education to ensure that as a College, we are able to show our success in delivering demonstrable improvements since the last inspection by OFSTED. We are provisionally planning for the IOT to open in 2021.  The capital investment will lead to a significant upgrade at the North Star site in Swindon and also at Cirencester College.

On receiving the news, Carole Kitching Principal and CEO, New College Swindon said 

“New College is delighted to be an anchor partner in the development of Swindon’s Institute of Technology. This is great news for Swindon and the wider region with the Institute set to become a beacon for higher level technical skills training and development, a real partnership of businesses with education providers”

University of Gloucestershire Vice-Chancellor, Stephen Marston, said: 

“Winning the IoT for Swindon is brilliant news for students, businesses and the whole community.  The University of Gloucestershire is delighted to be the anchor University for the Institute.  Working with our partners, we are committed to delivering a step-change in the availability of high quality professional and technical education in advanced manufacturing and engineering, life sciences, digital technologies and creative media.  This will be great for businesses, meeting their needs for higher level skills to drive future innovation and productivity.  It will be great for students who can achieve valuable qualifications all the way through to undergraduate and Masters level, through apprenticeships or stand-alone programmes, giving them a great platform for developing their careers.  And all delivered from state of the art new facilities in Swindon.”

Local Enterprise Partnership Chairman John Mortimer has made the following statement responding to the announcement:

“Enabling businesses to have appropriately skilled and competitive workforces to support growth, innovation and creativity remains an investment priority for the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership (SWLEP). I am delighted that Swindon College’s bid for an Institute of Technology has been successful. The central government investment of £17m, and the support of so many of our local businesses, is a particularly welcome boost to Swindon’s economy. The SWLEP looks forward to continuing our work with Swindon College, the anchor employers and partners to support the implementation of this project over the coming months.”