Kilkenny is getting a new College of the Future after the announcement of a €40m capital investment by the Higher Education Minister.
Simon Harris has confirmed his support for the plans for a new Further Education and Training Campus in the City.
Kilkenny Carlow ETB says it will transform further education and training services locally at a newly acquired campus in Kilkenny.
It will have modern specialist facilities with labs, and workshops for areas like electrical, cookery, plumbing, engineering, carpentry/joinery, multimedia and graphic design.
Kilkenny Mayor David Fitzgerald has confirmed to KCLR that it will be built at the old St Patrick’s Centre site on the Kells Road.
Speaking in Dublin today, Minister Harris said: “This is a brilliant day for Kilkenny and for Kilkenny Carlow ETB. Kilkenny has been chosen as one of ten locations to proceed to develop a further education College of the Future.
“We have already been to across the country announcing similar projects, and I’m delighted today to deliver the good news for Kilkenny.
“FET provision in Kilkenny is currently scattered around 14 locations in the city, including an old school building and various leased facilities. This proposal envisages bringing them all together at one state-of-the-art facility, delivering the best integrated and learning supports possible, while also providing fantastic opportunities for apprenticeships.
“The College of the Future Major Projects Fund will support the implementation of the vision set out in the Further Education Strategy. This Fund, and the proposed development in Kilkenny, has the potential to deliver on a range of strategic objectives. It is great that the proposal will now proceed to Preliminary Business Case Stage,” he said.
