Leicester: New £5.4m site for aeronautical engineering college approved

Plans to build a new £5.4m aeronautical engineering training center at a Leicester college have been approved.

The facility at Leicester College’s Abbey Park Campus on Painter Street will have space for up to 114 students.

The college said there was a “supply need to develop appropriate technical skills to address the shortage” in the industry.

The planning application has been approved by Leicester City Council.

A decision notice was published by the authority on Friday.

Work on the new facility is due to begin in August and is expected to be completed by the summer of 2025.

The new two-storey development, next to the college’s automotive engineering building, will include laboratories, workshops and a flight simulation room, according to planning documents.

The college said the facility would offer technical skills programs at level 4 and 5 as well as apprenticeships.

According to the planning documents, there is “definitely a skills shortage in the area” and a need “for young people to join the industry”.

Verity Hancock, principal and chief executive of the college, said: “We are delighted to be given the go-ahead to build the new aeronautical skills centre.

“When complete, the site will house industry-standard aeronautical equipment in a learning environment that will inspire the next generation of aviation and engineering professionals.”

Planning documents show the college has secured £4.9m from the Office for Students, the higher education regulator, for the project.

The college also contributed £500,000 towards the facility.