SENIOR councillors have backed a multi-million pound loan to an expanding higher and further education institution to help pay for upgrading its buildings and courses.

Burnley Council's executive approved the financial package for the town's college on Monday night to avoid it having to turn away hundreds of students in future.

The borough's new Labour leader Cllr Mark Townsend hailed the decision as 'an investment in improving the skills of future generations'.

The proposal will now be considered by a special full meeting of Burnley Council on November 4.

The loan, to be repaid over 15 years, will help cover the £7m cost of the new buildings including a specialised teaching block comprising of 19 further classrooms and specialist areas for health and science provision.

The expansion scheme also includes extending the existing sports centre to provide three classrooms, an elite athlete gym with running track, a dance and fitness studio, and a sports therapy space with hydrotherapy pool, sauna, steam room and cryotherapy suite.

This will support the college’s elite athlete programme created to provide students with the training they need to develop their professional sports careers alongside their other studies.

A report to the executive meeting said not providing the loan would mean the college would have to turn away more than 800 students, stop plans to deliver a sports therapist degree, reduce the number of elite athletes that study at the college, and limit the growth of its university, apprenticeship, and business training courses.

Cllr Townsend said: “This is an investment in improving the skills of future generations and a bold move to aid local businesses in their economic recovery and future development.

“It will benefit not just the college but also the whole borough for many years to come.

"It will help the college to expand its top class provision for young people, adult learners, university level students and the businesses that will employ them, across a wide range of sectors and in an array of exciting roles at the forefront of innovation and technologies.”

College principal Karen Buchanan said: “Burnley College has ambitious plans to continue to provide outstanding learning and teaching in new, state-of-the-art facilities.

"We are very proud of our long-standing partnership with Burnley Council as we continue to realise those ambitions.”

Cllr Gordon Birtwistle, leader of the council's Liberal Democrat group, said: "I am happy with his loan.

"It is an investment in the borough's young people and there is a strong business case for it."