The Oxford and Cherwell Valley College (OCVC) Group, lead sponsor of the new university technical college to be based in Reading, has announced the official name of the college and other important developments, including the project's receiving formal approval from the Government and the procurement of a site.
Reading’s University Technical College will be called UTC Reading, and the site has been secured on Crescent Road in East Reading - a central position to serve the proposed wide catchment area, which includes young people within a 15 mile radius of east Reading, extending to Newbury, Slough, Basingstoke and Farnborough. UTC Reading’s site, which will accommodate 600 students when at full capacity, offers extensive playing fields for sport and recreational activities to ensure that the 14 to 19 year olds starting in September 2013 have all of the facilities for the planned programme of extra-curricular activities.
UTC Reading will specialise in computer science and software engineering, taught alongside the national curriculum. The aim is to give students the benefit of practical study of the specialist subjects whilst still taking the GCSEs and A-levels that they would take at a regular school. The specialist curriculum proposed by the UTC will appeal to secondary school-aged pupils interested in computer science and/or engineering.
The recruitment drive to appoint a new principal for UTC Reading is also underway and the sponsors plan to have the chosen candidate in post by January 2013. Other teaching and support staff will be recruited soon after.
Another key development has been an agreement between schools minister Lord Hill and the sponsors. The signing of a ‘funding agreement’ is a key milestone in the process of developing the UTC to open in September 2013, as chief executive of OCVC Sally Dicketts commented: “The funding agreement being signed means that this project is really happening. Now that we have a name, location and this funding secured we are on the path to seeing the dream of UTC Reading become a reality. By 2013 I am confident we will have a leading-edge facility that Reading and the region will be proud of, and that can inspire the next generation of computer science and IT specialists through education.”
Making all of this happen is a committed partnership made up of sponsors and partners. These include Reading College, Reading School, the University of Reading, Microsoft, Cisco, Network Rail and Peter Brett Associates.
Resources: The Oxford and Cherwell Valley College (OCVC) Group website
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