Major step forward for proposed new Institute of Technology

The university is part of a consortium led by Chichester College Group (CCG) – and also including the University of  Sussex and North East Surrey College of Technology (NESCOT) - that is bidding for £13 million of government funding to enhance higher level skills training across the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) region. The proposal put forward has now passed a highly competitive first stage and been shortlisted to a final competitive stage.

The proposed Institute of Technology (IoT) would include a new state-of-the-art hub at Crawley College, housing engineering and digital ‘Learning Factories’ with specialist spokes for delivery at locations across the region, from East Surrey and the Gatwick Diamond to rural West Sussex and coastal communities. There would also be a focus on digital and sustainable technologies.

Crawley College

IoTs are intended to increase higher technical education across the country by aiming to encourage more people to continue studying, as well as attracting people of all ages to upskill or retrain. In particular, they are designed to spearhead the delivery of higher technical education in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects, bring colleges and universities together with employers to equip local economies with a skilled workforce.

Julie Kapsalis, Managing Director of Chichester College Group, said: “Our IoT will create an exciting new partnership between higher education, further education and employers to deliver an innovative new curriculum which will address the region’s current and future skills needs.

“Working in collaboration with the Universities of Sussex and Brighton and NESCOT, we’ll be sharing the best of higher education research and teaching with vocationally-driven further education colleges. This reflects our commitment to raising aspirations and supporting widening participation in higher education, particularly for under-represented groups across society.

“We hope this will also help to address the disproportionate economic impact of COVID-19 in the region and the need to provide essential reskilling and upskilling opportunities to enable the region’s recovery.”

Viki Faulkner, Head of Apprenticeships, said: “These plans complement the University of Brighton’s existing diverse, technically astute approach to educating the professionals of tomorrow. We welcome smoother progression pathways for learners from all backgrounds, to work alongside our degree apprenticeships portfolio, and even closer collaboration with our employer, Further Education and Higher Education partners to deliver the skills we need in the region.”