South Staffordshire College celebrates £15 million funding boost

South Staffordshire College is thrilled to announce that all four of its applications to the Department for Education’s Post-16 Capacity and Construction Skills Capacity Fund have been successful. No other college in England has had as many projects approved through this highly competitive funding process.

A total of £15 million will be invested in new and refurbished facilities across our Rodbaston, Lichfield, and Cannock Colleges. This significant investment comes hot on the heels of the opening of our brand-new, relocated Tamworth College in August 2025.

The projects will help the college meet the growing demand for places following a significant increase in 16-18-year-old students across all colleges over the past four years.

Lichfield College will benefit from increased capacity, including refurbished teaching spaces for its media provision and a new Learning Resource Centre.

Cannock College will gain additional workshop space to support construction skills training, building on the colleges long-standing reputation for construction and engineering education.

Rodbaston College will receive more than £10 million of investment, including additional teaching capacity, enhanced learning support facilities, and a brand-new, state-of-the-art Civil Engineering Centre. The centre will expand training opportunities for 16-18-year-olds, adults, and apprentices, equipping learners with the specialist skills that are in high demand across Staffordshire.

John Snow, Deputy Principal – Finance and Resources at South Staffordshire College, said: “This £15 million investment supports our vision to enhance training opportunities for the residents of South Staffordshire and beyond. It provides the college with a fantastic opportunity to further improve our facilities and expand the training we can offer, helping people into employment, upskilling those already in work, and supporting employers who urgently need skilled workers.

The fact that this funding comes so soon after the opening of our £34 million college in Tamworth is a real vote of confidence in South Staffordshire College from the Department for Education, for which we are extremely grateful.”