COLLEGE OF WEST ANGLIA: Fingers crossed but we could be within sight of victory for Fenland

THERE is mounting speculation last night that the Government is about to give Fenland an early Christmas present and release funding for a new campus for the College of West Anglia.

Confirmation is not expected until the middle of next week but it seems the college may have passed what's been termed the gate keeping test and has also bowed to the enormous pressure exerted it on by politicians, governors, parents and supporters in the Fens.

The test, as such, requires the college to have proven it can start work quickly, and at March there is plenty of evidence to suggest that contractors could indeed get on site within weeks, never mind months.

That could be one of the deciding factors that swings the �70 million project in Fenland's favour and could see it take precedence over other schemes stalled in the myriad of projects for which funding was promised but which collapsed along with the whole edifice that remains the Learning and Skills Council.

Good news for Fenland may not mean such glad tidings all round, however, since the same speculation surrounding March also suggests the Government will veto a new campus for Kings Lynn.

This could mean the whole spectrum of further education not only in Fenland but also in West Norfolk re-focusing to the March campus.

We're not out of the words yet but if confirmation of the March campus does come through it will be a victory for commonsense and decency and also a testament to the hard work of the movers and shakers within all the political parties.

Happily few have sought to make political capital of this issue, and for that we are grateful.

You could argue education is too important, anyway, to be left to politicians.

However when it comes to beating a drum for Fenland all have done us proud- let's hope we are within sight of the winning post.