FENLAND: Talks start to try and revive College of West Anglia's �70million March move

Story by: TOM JACKSON

TALKS have started between college, council and education chiefs to try and revive the College of West Anglia's �70million move to March.

A meeting was held as recently as yesterday (Thursday) to consider all the options available to help the college progress with the plans.

The development was revealed last night at Fenland District Council's full meeting by Councillor Fred Yeulett, portfolio holder for shaping the district's future.

Cllr Yeulett told councillors: "Only today Fenland District Council held meetings with representatives from the College of West Anglia, Learning and Skills Council and Cambridgeshire County Council to look at all possible options to take this project forward. We made it clear we will continue to pursue all the options to allow this."

Further talks are already planned between the college, LSC and the East of England Development Agency, to develop and assess the options.

However, Cllr Yeulett said: "It is not only the College of West Anglia that is losing out. We are going to get a knock-on effect for further and higher education, and for adults going to evening classes, across the district and across the county.

"We, along with a lot of areas, have suffered from this, so we must make every effort we possibly can to target this."

Work on the college was set to start earlier this year, when it emerged that Learning and Skills Council funding had collapsed.

The college then lost out on a share of �300million made available in the chancellor's budget. The setback could delay the project for several years.

But while talks are planned to save the new build project, Councillor Simon King reminded councillors that the current buildings in Wisbech - particularly the agricultural and horticultural complex - are in a "really poor state".

Cllr King added: "We must make sure that the agricultural and horticultural facilities are preserved as much as possible".