College opens renewable energy training facility

The Green Skills Centre has opened at Northampton College's Booth Lane campus

A college has launched an "incredible" £500,000 renewable energies education and training facility.

Northampton College said the Green Skills Centre at its Booth Lane campus would support the construction sector by providing up to 250 students with access to the latest green technologies each year.

On Friday, dozens of employers attended the launch of the centre, which features rig and bays for advancements including ground source heat pumps, electrification of vehicles and solar thermal energy among others.

It was officially opened by college principal Jason Lancaster and Northampton North MP Lucy Rigby.

"Northampton College is already a beacon of excellence," said the Labour MP.

"Allowing people the opportunity to gain green construction skills and training in the very latest renewable technologies is exactly where we need to be as a country – tackling both the skills shortage and the climate crisis and providing businesses with what they need.

"We need more places like this around the country and I couldn’t be prouder that Northampton has this leading facility.”

Mr Lancaster said: "In this incredible new centre our students will receive training on top-of-the-range low carbon technologies to prepare them for the green jobs which desperately need to be filled across the country.

"The green skills they will learn here are crucial to both our economy and to our nation’s efforts to tackle climate change.

"We’re proud to have developed this centre and its offering with leading local and national experts in the field – it’s a fantastic example of what can be achieved when educational organisations and employers work together.”

The centre will provide up to 250 students with access to the latest green technologies each year