College plans £3.2m defence training site

A college has set out plans to spend £3.2m on specialist equipment to train people for jobs in defence and engineering.

Yeovil College, which is based in Somerset, wants to open the facility at Dorset Innovation Park in Wool, with courses ranging from apprenticeships to higher-level training.

The college said the plans, which still need final approval, would bring "specialist equipment and high quality technical training even closer to employers and communities in Dorset".

It could be the first phase of a wider development at the site, which is owned by Dorset Council and could see further investment from the authority in future.

The college already has a £2.1m Advanced Engineering and Defence Skills Centre in Yeovil and supports more than 550 apprentices.

It was named as one of five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges by the government in April, in a bid backed by Dorset Council and Dorset Innovation Park Ltd.

Almost half of the college's students live in Dorset, it said.

It works with more than 100 employers, including Leonardo Helicopters UK, BAE Systems, Honeywell, Thales and TKMS Atlas.

College principal Mark Bolton said: "We are not simply talking about meeting the future skills needs of the defence sector, we are actively building the infrastructure, partnerships and specialist provision needed to make it happen."

George Round, the college's head of engineering and defence industries, said courses could cover electro-mechanical engineering, aerospace, autonomy and mechanical engineering, as well as adult skills and short courses.

He added that dedicated workshops and classrooms would let students "combine practical, hands-on learning with emerging technologies".