Construction on £13.6m Energy Central Learning Hub in Blyth underway following groundbreaking ceremony

The event kicked off construction of the Energy Central Learning Hub, which will provide vocational training and engineering courses focused on the energy industry.

The facility, due to open in September 2024, will also have event hosting spaces to allow conferences and careers events promoting clean energy employment and research to take place, as well as a clean energy visitor centre.

Northumberland County Council leader Glen Sanderson said: “Today marks an incredibly exciting time for Blyth.

“The Energy Central Learning Hub will be a fantastic skills and training centre for people of all ages and abilities to learn STEM subjects and vocational courses with the help of local employers and schools.

“This will help put young people on a pathway to working in the clean energy sector or help people retrain and upskill to move into the rapidly growing industry.”

The development is run by Energy Central, a partnership between the county council, Advance Northumberland, Port of Blyth, and government-founded innovation organisation Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult.

Funding for the project, near the port’s South Harbour entrance, comes from the £90m Energising Blyth programme.

Nearby school Bede Academy will be teaching T Level courses at the new facility once it is complete, and the project has close ties to other North East groups such as employers and research institutions.

Port of Blyth CEO Martin Lawlor said: “We are absolutely delighted that spades are now in the ground and construction can begin.

“Blyth has a proud heritage in the energy sector and is a fitting location to house a clean energy skills, education, and training facility. We cannot wait to get started on the build.

“Having Bede Academy onboard is fantastic and the first step in offering world-class training and education for Blyth residents, and for the whole of Northumberland and the North of Tyne Combined Authority.”

North of Tyne Mayor Jamie Driscoll added: “What an incredible milestone. Residents of Blyth and further afield should be very proud of this development.

“It will be an epicentre of learning and will make a huge difference to the town.

“Blyth is quickly becoming a clean energy revolution leader and we expect a lot of people, businesses and educational providers, to be interested in Energy Central Learning Hub and the next phase of the build, the Energy Central Institute.”

Details of the Energy Central Institute, which will provide training and research at the higher education level, are yet to be submitted for planning approval.

Combining with the learning hub to form the Energy Central Campus, these facilities will join with the existing cluster of industrial training organisations in Blyth that includes Port Training Services, STEM@EnergyCentral, and facilities run by Newcastle University, Northumberland Skills, and Blyth Tall Ship project.

Councillor Eileen Cartie, whose Wensleydale ward includes the Energy Central Learning Hub, said: “This is a great milestone for the project which will boost young people's educational skills and create fantastic learning opportunities for the people of Blyth and further afield.

"It's great to see organisations working together to bring forward the regeneration of Blyth."

Ian Levy, MP for Blyth Valley, said: “Today’s groundbreaking ceremony is an important milestone in this important project, which will help local people secure well paid jobs in the renewable energy sector as Blyth leads the way in the green energy revolution.

"I am proud to have played my part in securing national funding for the £90m Energising Blyth programme and I would like to put on record my thanks to the Conservative administration at county hall, Advance Northumberland, Port of Blyth, the catapult, and all of the other organisations and businesses who are working so well together on the transformational regeneration of our area.”