Boost in Higher Education Places for East Lancashire Residents

Date published: 17 August 2010

Accrington and Rossendale College has announced that it has been allocated a 24.5 per cent increase in funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) so that it can provide extra higher education places for the forthcoming academic year.

Out of 254 institutions offering higher education in England, Accrington and Rossendale College has received the highest percentage increase in allocation in the North West and the fifth biggest in the country.

Lynda Mason, Deputy Principal at Accrington and Rossendale College, commented, “This is excellent news for the East Lancashire community, especially at a time when higher education places are limited at a number of institutions and higher education budgets, on the whole, are being cut. The extra funding means that we now have the opportunity to take on around 100 additional learners this September, offering a fantastic opportunity for people who thought that they wouldn’t get the chance to advance their skills in 2010.

“We have a very successful and diverse higher education provision that has been specially created with the needs of our local community in mind and also focuses on widening participation by opening up higher education pathways to non-traditional learners. Our programmes are validated by some of the best universities in the country such as the University of Central Lancashire, Liverpool John Moores, Bolton University and the University of Huddersfield. Many of our programmes have been designed in conjunction with employers to ensure that we are giving our higher education learners the skills they need to progress seamlessly to high level careers. Plus, for the majority of our programmes we do not charge top up fees, saving our learners thousands of pounds and offering more people the chance to progress.”

Accrington and Rossendale College currently offers higher education programmes in most subject areas including health and social care, media, performing arts and communications, sport and leisure, business, accounts and management, construction and technology and teaching and learning. To order a copy of the Higher Education prospectus call 01254 389933.