Wiltshire College & University Centre has launched an innovative new development at its Trowbridge campus at the start of the new academic year.
Known as Tech Trowbridge, the project provides an advanced environment for the development and promotion of digital technology skills.
The Tech Trowbridge project brings together WCUC’s courses in the computing, IT and digital media sectors, and has involved the creation of several dynamic new facilities at the campus.
Students were able to make use of the new facilities for the first time during the first week of term, which also included a visit from South West Wiltshire MP Dr Andrew Murrison, who has been a keen supporter of the project since its inception.
“Thanks to funding from the Local Skills Improvement Fund for Swindon and Wiltshire, we have been able to develop several dynamic new facilities at our Trowbridge campus focused on digital skills training – a key priority identified within the Local Skills Improvement Plan.
“Tech Trowbridge will benefit our current and future students, and also lead to the development of important learning resources for businesses and organisations across the county in the digital sector as they look to upskill their workforces.”
Split across three main areas, the new facilities include a multi-purpose venue capable of hosting numerous events, from Esports competitions to coding competitions as well as providing a digital backdrop for music and theatre productions.
The venue has live broadcast and streaming capabilities, including a video wall display to provide interactive learning.
The second area has seen the creation of a large flexible workspace across two floors, featuring collaborative and individual state-of-the-art workstations to provide students and businesses with access to the latest digital resources.
The third area builds on previous digital-focused development projects, including the creation of new IT laboratories and the Digital CAVE (Computer Aided Virtual Environment), developed through T Level capital funding.
Tech Trowbridge is WCUC’s response to addressing the local skills gaps identified through the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) released last year.
In November 2023, WCUC was appointed as the lead partner for the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Skills Improvement Fund and secured £2.5 million worth of funding for the region.
Tech Trowbridge will promote the benefits of digital technology to businesses across Swindon and Wiltshire, ensuring digital skills are accessible to all and will support them to embrace advancing technologies.
Dr Murrison said: “I was absolutely blown away by what I saw at the Tech Trowbridge project at Wiltshire College & University Centre’s Trowbridge campus, which is the culmination of a lot of hard work by both the college and numerous supporters.
“What has been created is a truly cutting-edge facility for the enhancement of digital skills, which will allow the college to become a market leader for teaching across the digital sector.
“Trowbridge and the surrounding areas are home to a number of emerging companies focused on digital skills and technologies, and it is right that the college should take the lead in developing future workforces in these industries which will help to grow our communities.”
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