Staffordshire students set for more college places

beehiveweb.co.uk editorial team 2026-08-12 18:21 3 min read

A diverse group of young students collaborating around a table reviewing city planning maps.

Students across Staffordshire are set to gain access to more classrooms, workshops and specialist training after colleges in the county secured more than £34 million in government funding.

The money, allocated through the Department for Education’s Post-16 Capacity Fund, is intended to help colleges meet growing demand for places among 16- to 18-year-olds. It will also support adult learners and apprentices at some campuses.

Staffordshire County Council worked with further education providers on the case for investment. The projects range from extra teaching rooms in Newcastle-under-Lyme to a Civil Engineering Centre at Rodbaston College.

College projects across Staffordshire

Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group has received £6.8 million towards a £13 million extension to its main Knutton Lane campus building in Newcastle-under-Lyme. The extension is planned to create 16 additional classrooms.

Burton and South Derbyshire College has been awarded £4.9 million to replace its former engineering workshop with a modern purpose-built learning facility at its Burton-upon-Trent campus.

Stoke-on-Trent College has secured £6 million to continue developing facilities designed to give students practical skills, knowledge and experience for high-demand industries.

The largest individual allocation, £15 million, goes to South Staffordshire College for new and refurbished facilities at its Rodbaston, Lichfield and Cannock campuses.

New capacity for media, construction and engineering

At Lichfield College, the funding will increase capacity through refurbished media teaching spaces and a new Learning Resource Centre.

Staffordshire students set for more college places

Cannock College is due to gain extra workshop space for construction skills training, building on its construction and engineering provision.

More than £10 million of South Staffordshire College’s allocation will be invested at Rodbaston College. Plans include additional teaching capacity, improved learning-support facilities and a new Civil Engineering Centre. The centre is expected to widen specialist training opportunities for 16- to 18-year-olds, adults and apprentices.

Taken together, the funding is aimed at increasing the number of learners colleges can accommodate while updating the spaces in which technical and vocational courses are taught.

Government Post-16 Capacity Fund allocation

The Post-16 Capacity Fund is a Department for Education programme intended to help colleges expand places and improve facilities where demand is rising. The allocations announced for Staffordshire are capital funding for buildings and learning spaces rather than a direct payment to students.

Robin Hall, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Economy and Skills, said the investment would give more young people opportunities to learn in modern facilities and help businesses access people with the skills needed locally.

Further demand assessments

The county council and its education partners said they will continue to assess demand for 16- to 18-year-old places and identify any further investment required to maintain sufficient provision across Staffordshire.

Source: Staffordshire County Council Newsroom

Context & actions About this article

Source check How this was checked

This report is based on Staffordshire County Council’s published details of Department for Education funding allocations.

Checks

Confirmed the total stated allocation of more than £34 million.
Checked the named colleges, campuses and individual funding amounts against the council an...
Distinguished capital investment in facilities from direct financial support for students.

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