Plans to turn Coleg Cambria’s Northop Campus into a ‘Centre of Excellence’

Marmosets, tarantulas, lizards, mice and parrots were among the animals an MP got to see during a college site visit.

Mark Tami MP visited Coleg Cambria’s leadership team to discuss changes to the provision of animal care and agricultural courses after his constituents contacted him about them.

Chief Executive Officer Yana Williams invited Mr Tami to the college’s Northop campus to meet with her and Assistant Principal Technical Studies and Student Lead Leoma Roberts and Vicky Edwards, Vice Principal Technical Studies.

Previously animal care courses have been held across the college’s Northop and Llysfasi campuses, but now Coleg Cambria plans to consolidate all animal courses at Northop and take Llysfasi back to its roots as an agriculture and agricultural education centre.

The Northop campus is also a major provider for learners with Additional Learning Needs and further facilities and courses will be developed to meet their needs.

There are plans to add experience days, doggy day care, companion and therapy animals, and agility and handling training.

Former horticultural and engineering buildings at the Northop campus will be improved as well as the library and catering facilities.

“We want to make it a centre of excellence for North East Wales,” said Yana Williams.

Both sites will be community hubs and will focus on improving their offer to local schools.

At the Llysfasi site in Denbighsire, work has started on what will be the campus’s sustainability hub, which will allow the college to interact with stakeholders and will include a showroom for farming equipment.

There are plans to develop modern hostel accommodation and in time a deli and farm shop, glamping site, electric charging points and forest walks.

There will be information days and courses to support local farmers to develop their own commercial enterprises.

It was emphasised that opportunities to learn in Welsh will be the same on either site, and that a quality impact assessment undertaken showed that the plans will increase the use of Welsh.

“I’m really impressed with Coleg Cambria’s ambitious plans for Northop and Llysfasi,” said Mark Tami MP.

“The team here have demonstrated some practical and positive changes and I’m reassured that nothing is being scaled down, only enhanced.”

“It’s good to know also that learners who want to study in Welsh will have equal opportunity to do this on both sites.”