Julia Lopez MP has welcomed the Conservative Government’s £140 million investment to transform the facilities of more than 40 schools and colleges, including Havering Sixth Form College within the New City College Group, via the Post-16 Capacity Grant.
The funding will be used to help schools and colleges to meet the demographic increases in young people aged 16-19 and can be used to build more classroom space or technical teaching facilities, so that more students have access to high quality learning environments and projects to help them on a path to success.
Recognising a significant demand for additional places locally, a grant of £4 million grant has been allocated to Havering Sixth Form College.
The grant will part-fund a £5.65 million development at the campus, with the remaining £1.65 million being funded by New City College. The grant is very welcome funding support which will enable a brand-new teaching block to be built to accommodate an increasing number of students at the campus. A condition of the Department for Education (DfE) funding is that the new facilities must be complete within a tight time-frame - by September 2024.
With its extensive breadth of subject options, Havering Sixth Form is a popular local choice and applications for this coming September are up 25% on last year. In the meantime, the college is already self-funding refurbishment of an existing part of the campus to include new classrooms and science labs and upgrading student services and social spaces to accommodate an additional 200 students in September 2023.
The increased capacity facilitated by the DfE grant will allow this growth in numbers to be sustainable into the future, allowing even more young people to benefit from what Havering Sixth Form has to offer.
Commenting on the announcement, Julia Lopez MP, said:
'I am delighted that the Havering Sixth Form College has been selected as one of the 44 schools and colleges that will receive direct Government funding for new educational facilities.
It is fantastic to see yet more investment in children's future here in Havering, providing a modern, safe and high quality place to learn for every pupil.
In March I met with the Principal of Havering Colleges, Janet Smith, who advised of the College's ambition to develop the range of courses available to students, working with local stakeholders, and to improve their facilities. This Government funding will help accelerate those plans.'
In addition to the £140 million Post-16 Capacity Fund, the DfE also announced last week a £48 million investment through the Skills Investment Fund. The fund to boost the rollout of Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) and equipping students from all backgrounds with the high-quality, higher-level skills needed to secure well-paying jobs.
These announcements follow last month’s announcement that five Hornchurch & Upminster schools will receive Condition Improvement Funds to improve facilities alongside April’s announcement that a £2 billion increase in school funding would deliver over £3.5 million to schools within the constituency.
A copy of a letter from the Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education, Robert Halfon MP, confirming the grant funding to Havering Sixth Form College can be found below.
