130 jobs under threat as Coleg Gwent faces £5m budget cut

Up to 130 jobs are under threat at a south Wales college that faces making £5.7m in budget cuts.

Coleg Gwent said there would also be reductions to courses due to £29.9m further education funding cuts by the Welsh government.

Most part-time college and community courses will go from September but full-time courses are not affected.

The Welsh government said it was working closely with the college on any potential impact.

The college, which has campuses in Ebbw Vale, Newport, Crosskeys, Pontypool and Usk, said it was now in a 45-day consultation with staff and trade unions and was making a request for voluntary redundancies.

'Major impact'

Principal Jim Bennett said: "I appreciate the pressures that the Welsh government is facing with their own funding being reduced from Westminster, but the real impact of these cuts on learners, jobs, communities and the people of Wales will be very serious."

Neath Port Talbot College Group has also held meetings with staff about the "major impact" a £4m budget cut will have on its courses.

A Welsh government spokesman added: "The UK government has cut the Welsh government's budget by £1.4bn in real terms since 2010. We have been clear about the financial challenges this has presented and the difficult decisions we've had to make.

"It is now more important than ever that we focus not just on the resources that are available but how we use them and what we achieve."