Leeds College of Building to expand estate by a third as it buys former Vodafone site
Leeds College of Building (LCB) has announced the purchase of a large building adjacent to its North Street Campus – a move the college said would “significantly expand” facilities and open up new training opportunities.
The 5,000 metre square former Vodafone site on Melbourne Street sits next to LCB’s North Street Campus and will effectively increase the size of the colllege’s estate by a third.
LCB is the UK's only specialist Further Education college dedicated to the construction and built environment sector, working with over 800 employers, including NG Bailey, BAM Nuttall, Morgan Sindall, and JN Bentley.
CEO and principal, Nikki Davis, who currently represents the further education sector on the Construction Skills Mission Board, said: “We are thrilled to announce the purchase of our neighbouring site. This exciting acquisition will enable us to train even more construction professionals and safeguard a talent pipeline in areas such as groundwork for future construction projects across the region.
“This expansion is a significant step towards our ambition for growth as one of the nation’s only Construction Technical Excellence Colleges - strengthening a vital workforce that will keep the construction industry, and our economy, moving forward.
LBC said planning was now underway to determine how the additional space can be developed to address regional skills gaps.
It added that the project is now also seeking funding for renovation works and specialist equipment to support training in key government priority areas, including infrastructure, sustainability, and new housing.”
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, added: “It’s fantastic to see Leeds College of Building going from strength to strength, first being recognised as the Technical Excellence College for Construction for all of Yorkshire and the Humber and now expanding into these exciting new premises.
“By training the skilled workers we need for transformational projects like constructing tramlines, building new homes and retrofitting existing ones, Leeds College of Building puts our region at the epicentre of the nation’s rebuilding effort, creating good jobs and putting more money in people’s pockets.”
Once refurbished, the newly acquired Melbourne Street building will align North Street Campus with LCB’s modern South Bank Campus, which opened its South Bank 1 building in 2015, followed by South Bank 2 in 2019.