College on Track for Completion

A major extension to a Wolverhampton college is on track for completion.

Morgan Sindall Construction was awarded the £12.6m contract to expand the Thomas Telford University Technical College (UTC) last year and began work on the 4,500 sq m extension in the summer.

So far, it has handed over the all-weather pitch, performance space and refurbished kitchen.

Designed by Associated Architects, the extension comprises three-storey teaching building and a separate sports hall facility with a reconfigured external social space and multi-use games area.

Based at the University of Wolverhampton’s Springfield site – Europe’s largest construction education campus – the expanded UTC will be built alongside the institution’s School of Architecture & the Built Environment (SOABE), and the new National Brownfield Institute which is currently being developed.

Attention now turns to the completion of the new sports block and teaching block.

Handover is set for August and will increase the schools intake by 450 additional pupils, taking the total capacity to 1,050, while supporting at least 50 additional roles for teaching and support staff.

In attendance to celebrate the work completed at the college so far was Mike Woods (DfE Project Manager, Avtar Gill (Thomas Telford UTC Principal), Nathalie Richardson (Associate – Associated Architects) and Amy Kirby (Architectural Technologist – Associated Architects). As well as James Lawley (Senior Project Manager, Matthew Rees (Design Manager and Luke White (Senior Quantity Surveyor) all from the Morgan Sindall Construction team.

Richard Fielding, area director at Morgan Sindall Construction said: “We are excited to see the extension take shape and move a step closer to the handover of this landmark college which will see improved facilities for pupils and teachers. The extension will enable the next generation of leaders in construction to learn in a state-of-the-art environment.

“We are huge advocates of the new T level qualifications and it is incredibly rewarding for both ourselves as employers and for young people to see them gain crucial work experience on site which will propel them into successful careers in the industry. We have seen the students who have joined us have grown in confidence and flourish in their roles.

“I also want to thank the wider team for their resilience during supply shortages by sequencing work to mitigate issues and avoid disruption. In what can be a challenging market, the supply chain has stepped up and collaborated with us to find solutions to any issues we’ve encountered.

“We will continue to work closely with the school, council and supply chain to deliver the school in time of the new school year. We are all incredibly excited to handover this project in August which will have a huge benefit to Wolverhampton in terms of its educational offering and closing the skills gap.”

Consultants on the scheme include structural engineers Copeland Wedge Associates and M&E Design Consultant Couch Perry Wilkes.