Work has officially begun on Forth Valley College’s new £78 million Falkirk Campus.
Scotland’s Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, Shirley-Anne Somerville, cut the first section of turf at the Middlefield site on Friday 10 November 2017.
Accompanied by FVC Principal Dr Ken Thomson, Ross Martin Chair of the FVC Board of Management and supervised by Hector MacAulay, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Regional Business in Scotland and Stephen Scott, Managing Director for Balfour Beatty’s Central Scotland Delivery Unit, Ms Somerville used a digger to break the first ground on the exciting project.
Also supporting the official groundbreaking ceremony were Modern Apprentices, Jack Armstrong (20) from Helensburgh who works for ScotRail, Grant Watson (18) from Bo’ness who works for INEOS, Ruairidh Little (18) from Broxburn who works for TechnipFMC, Niamh Blanski (17) from Dunfermline who works for ExxonMobil, Amy Hay (21) from Grangemouth who works for Cala Chem and Shannon McAllister (16) from Irvine who works for GlaxoSmithKline.
The new campus - which is earmarked for completion in November 2019 - will complete FVC’s ambitious estates programme which saw their £21 million Alloa Campus opened in 2011 and their £29 million Stirling Campus opened a year later. The Scottish Government is investing £65 million in the construction of the new campus.
The new Falkirk HQ will focus heavily on training facilities designed for science and technology, engineering, sport and healthcare, and will also have state-of-the-art provision and capabilities to accommodate a wide range of FVC’s courses.
FVC Sod cutting event 10.11.17 from Forth Valley College on Vimeo.
Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science, Shirley-Anne Somerville, said: “It’s great to see work now underway at the Falkirk Campus. Once complete, these cutting-edge facilities will be a fantastic addition to the Forth Valley College estate.
“I’m also pleased to see that the new campus will have a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths subjects. Some of the students here today are working in industries using these skills.
“This Government’s significant contribution to the project demonstrates our commitment to supporting, where we are able, Scotland’s college estate and helping to provide a modern, learning environment for students.
“This will make a real difference - ensuring that students can reach their full potential and be better prepared for work or further study.”
Dr Ken Thomson, Forth Valley College, Principal said: “We were delighted to welcome the Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science to officially start the work on our new Falkirk Campus. It really is exciting to see the building phase begin at the Middlefield site and we are delighted to hand over to the very capable hands of Balfour Beatty who will help us realise our vision.
“When this campus is complete it will be one of the most innovative further education institutions in both design and the programmes we offer. It will major in science, technology and engineering, sport and healthcare and will also offer a wide range of other relevant subjects. This will be a legacy building for Forth Valley and the people of Falkirk. It will be our headquarters and will fully complement the college’s family of buildings including our two new campuses at Alloa and Stirling – allowing us to take our making learning work mission to the next level.”
John Kemp, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Funding Council, said: “This is an important milestone. It brings staff and students at Forth Valley College’s Falkirk Campus a step closer to benefiting from a new, modern campus designed for twenty-first century learning.”
Hector MacAulay, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Regional Business in Scotland, said: “We were delighted to stand alongside our client, Forth Valley College and the Scottish Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science this morning to mark the first step in the delivery of the new Falkirk Campus.
“Once complete, this campus and its associated facilities will provide over 2,000 students in Falkirk with the state-of-the-art Science and Engineering facility needed to inspire and educate our future workforce.”
