£60m plans to transform college site

Ageing Rotherham College of Arts and Technology, which has more than 23,000 students, will be transformed in plans expected to take up to seven years to complete.

The scheme will involve the demolition of the town centre college’s Eastwood and Clifton buildings, which will be replaced with a new education complex.

The original Howard Building in Eastwood Lane will be left after college bosses said it was still fit for purpose.

Once work starts, students are expected to be housed at the college’s 50 community venues across Rotherham and at its Rother Valley campus, to avoid disruption. The college’s decision to replace its existing buildings will be a blow to Rotherham Council, who had hoped it would move to the former Guest and Chrimes site half a mile away as part of the giant Rotherham Renaissance project.

But the college says such a move would be “too risky” because of the uncertainty over exactly when redevelopment will start on that site.

College principal George Trow said: “We are delighted that governors have given the go-ahead to create a modern campus in the town centre.

“It is a phased development and the architects have come up with a really good design that has minimised the impact on students, using other town centre locations in addition to using some of the Rother Valley campus.

“The impact on business in particular is very important to us, and a modern, state-of-the-art design will not only attract the local community but also employers.

“Discussions have taken place with staff, planners and the Learning and Skills Council, as well as our other partners and shareholders.”

Rotherham College has 8,000 students aged under 18 and thousands of adult students. Its existing buildings have more than 200 classrooms, it offers 3,500 courses a year, and has an annual turnover of more than 23 million.