Borough UTC unaffected by school closing

Lyndsay MacAuley, from the Northern Schools Trust, said the university technical college (UTC) on Parson’s Walk is moving in the right direction.

Doubt has once more been cast on the viability of the college’s model after the £9m Greater Manchester UTC in Oldham it is shutting its doors after just three years due to lack of pupils.

Wigan UTC has also found recruiting 14-to-19-year-olds to its courses offering a mixture of academic and vocational skills somethingof a challenge but Ms MacAuley insists it is in a strong position.

She said: “Wigan UTC is now part of the Northern Schools Trust, who run amongst other schools, a very large and successful UTC, the Life Sciences UTC.

“We have a Good Ofsted judgement, incredible student destinations and recruitment for September 2017 is very strong, with numbers double those of last year. In the next few weeks we will be announcing a broader curriculum offer for students along with new industry and university partners.

“No school in the Wigan area will have access to so many placements, industry masterclasses and apprenticeship opportunities or have so many day to day contacts with leading academics from universities around the region. This is an exciting time for our students.

“We are hosting a number of open evenings in March, April and May to allow parents and students the chance to visit and find out how they might benefit from the investment in their future careers.”

The Oldham UTC is the seventh facility of its kind to close, according to a leading education industry website.