Bournemouth and Poole College revamp gets go-ahead

The renovations, set for Poole’s North Road campus, have been endorsed by borough planning chiefs and could start taking shape within the next few months.

Under the scheme, the Poole campus’s main building will undergo a complete facelift while the student reception area will be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

Principal Lawrence Vincent, inset, said: “This significant investment in our North Road campus demonstrates again our commitment to improving the learning experience for all our students.”

Last December the government’s Skills Funding Agency awarded Bournemouth and Poole College a grant worth £1.4milion.

The rest of the project’s costs will be met from college coffers.

College executive director of resources, Ken Roberts, said: “The £4million investment will provide a fresh modern new face and enables us to continue to deliver state-of-the-art learning facilities for our students.”

Building work is expected to commence at the North Road campus as early as April.

A college spokesman confirmed: “The scheme will see a dramatic external modernisation of both buildings and internal student facilities at the North Road campus of the college, significantly improving the experiences of students who study at the college.

“The project will involve a slick re-cladding of the exterior of the main building in North Road to a high standard and the restructure of the main student reception area, which will be equipped with the latest stylish facilities.”

The improvements are part of a wider £10million investment in the college’s infrastructure which have already seen a new science, technology, engineering and maths unit open – as well as a Marine Technology Centre, music studios and an art and design hub.