1:49pm Monday 5th May 2008
By Telegraph comment
FOR far too long East Lancashire has been one of the few areas of its size in the country without university-standard education.
Now at last we are about to take a big step towards filling that gap with the simultaneous construction of Blackburn College's new £13million Higher Education building off Barbara Castle Way and Burnley's £81m university and college campus which is expected to open by September next year and eventually host more than 1,100 students from the University of Central Lancashire.
The influx of students that these projects will bring to both towns, and the higher education jobs that go with them, are sure to bring important benefits to both towns and help to make their centres more vibrant and attractive places.
The growth of these seats of learning will also give local employers a bigger pool of talent to draw on and provide an extra incentive for new employers to want to move into the region.
In short as Blackburn College principal Ian Clinton points out the developments will ultimately improve the skills base and boost confidence in the whole economy of East Lancashire. It's only sad that its taken so many years of lobbying to get this far.
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