The College, which currently has some 8,500 students in full and part time study at a variety of levels ranging from National Certificate to Masters Degrees, is anticipating a mutually beneficial partnership over the course of the three year deal.
As a member of the University of the Highlands and Islands, Inverness College has had a significant year. In February 2011 UHI was granted full university status by the Privy Council, making it Scotland’s newest university and concluding an 18 year project to attain the prestigious title. UHI is made up of 13 colleges and research centres in the Highlands, Moray, Argyll, the Western Isles and Perthshire. Its fledgling university status is expected to kick start a wave of prosperity for the entire region, with Inverness College UHI planning to relocate to a state-of-the-art campus along with the Centre for Health Science and the Scottish Agricultural College.
The Beechwood Campus on the eastern side of Inverness will be at the heart of a wider drive to retain young people in the North of Scotland, in a bid to reverse the much documented trend for youth migration from the Highlands. The new campus is also expected to attract students into the area as well. The new Partners in Enterprise relationship between Inverness College UHI and Inverness Chamber of Commerce will seek to bolster efforts not only to retain school leavers but also to attract young people from other parts of Scotland, the UK and indeed the rest of the world. Education, training and employment opportunities are undoubtedly key to this.
Commenting on the partnership agreement, Principal and CEO of Inverness College UHI, John Spencer elaborated: “This is an important new arrangement between Inverness College UHI and the Chamber of Commerce, which enables us to strengthen the College’s engagement with the business community at this critical and challenging time. We need to work closely together to maximise the opportunities the region has at hand, to capitalise on them, and to realise new possibilities that lay ahead. Inverness College UHI is ready to play its full part in building success in the Highlands. ”
The College is extremely keen to establish and nurture positive relationships with the local business community. There is a wealth of untapped opportunities both for training and employment in the Highlands, and College leaders will work closely with the Inverness Chamber of Commerce Board to allow these to flourish to the benefit of the local economy and community.
Commenting on the establishment of the partnership, Chief Executive of Inverness Chamber of Commerce, Stewart Nicol said: “It is hugely important for us to liaise more closely with Inverness College UHI and joining the Partners in Enterprise group will greatly strengthen links with the local business community. It is particularly timely; given the official university status recently bestowed on the UHI and of course the planned transfer to the new Beechwood Campus.
“The Campus itself represents a huge opportunity for businesses locally to get involved in both the planning and construction stages, as well as subsequent contracts for supply and maintenance. It is a wonderful chance to create a state-of-the-art further and higher education hub that will be the envy of the sector. It is widely known that in the last several decades, a significant proportion of school leavers have migrated from the area. Now young people across the Highlands will have the chance to stay in the North to study and work in their chosen field. Over and above the vitally important local aspect, given the UHI’s full university status and the proposed Beechwood Campus, we can now go to the global market place to attract students to the Highlands. Having a skilled workforce in the region will of course have a positive knock-on effect for the local economy and stimulate growth for Inverness and the wider area.”