WORK and training opportunities for young people were described as “top of the agenda” in Whitehill and Bordon this week, as the town’s new Future Skills Centre nears completion.

This comes as East Hampshire MP and Minister of State for Employment Damian Hinds announced that the proportion of 16 to 24 year olds who have left full-time education and are unemployed was 5.1 per cent - “a record low”.

Marking the “topping out” (completion of the roof) of the Future Skills Centre, last week Hampshire County Council’s executive member for education Peter Edgar said: “As the building of this impressive new centre nears completion, we are looking ahead to the technical-training opportunities that it will soon offer to young people in Whitehill and Bordon, and beyond. Finishing the roof is just the beginning - courses at the new centre will start in September and are open to applications.

“This flagship facility will offer young people, employers and the wider community the skills necessary for the jobs that will be created by the regeneration, and improve the area’s economic prosperity. We’re proud to have the scale, capacity, experience and expertise to deliver key infrastructure projects like these, and ultimately to bring new opportunities to the community.”

The Future Skills Centre is at the former Louisburg Barracks site and is being developed by the Homes and Communities Agency.

The centre will deliver a range of construction courses, provided by the Basingstoke College of Technology.

The college is recruiting students to start in September on courses which include carpentry, brickwork, plumbing and the built environment, including full-time and part-time study options as well as apprenticeships.

The core curriculum reflects the skills needed in the area, which have been identified by the Construction Industry Training Board, and confirmed by developers and contractors involved in the regeneration.

Although the focus will be on the construction sector, the centre will become a new hub for general technical training and will host a broad adult and community learning programme for the wider population.

Anthony Bravo, principal of Basingstoke College of Technology, said: “We have already received applications for our courses starting in September; and from our work with local schools and employers we know the Future Skills Centre will be a great success.”

The Home and Communities Agency secured £3.8m to fund the project, through the Local Growth Fund Grant from the Enterprise M3 Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), and then selected the county council as the best organisation to build the new facility and identify an operator.

The county council also put £250,000 towards the building costs.

The facility is one part of the masterplan to extend and regenerate the town following the departure of the Army in 2015 and closure of the Bordon Garrison - the leading employer in the area. The county council is actively involved in the provision of the new infrastructure, vital to support the town, including constructing a £27m relief road and new school facilities.

Kevin Bourner, general manager at the Homes and Communities Agency, said: “The Future Skills Centre is another great example of collaboration between partners. As well as providing much-needed homes for Whitehill and Bordon, it is important that we also strengthen the local community by providing the opportunity for jobs and training.

“The Future Skills Centre will do this by offering valuable training and construction-related employment opportunities in the area.”

Geoff French CBE, chairman of the Enterprise M3 Local Enterprise Partnership, said the development of Whitehill and Bordon was “gathering pace”, adding he was “delighted to see the Future Skills Centre reaching an inaugural stage”. “With the significant investment into the Whitehill and Bordon area, it is critical we have a skilled workforce to ensure economic growth for the area,” he added.

“The Skills Centre will play a vital part in the lives of young people and the wider community to provide technical construction skills to support the new development of the town.”

Mr Hinds welcomed news that the rate of unemployment - at 4.7 per cent - has fallen to its “lowest level since 2005”. “I’m delighted by another set of record-breaking figures showing more people in work than ever before and unemployment falling to its lowest in 12 years,” he said. “Long-term unemployment is at its lowest level since before the 2008 recession so the economy continues to strengthen and show resilience. Employment is up, wages are up and there are more people working full time. This is good news for people across the UK, but we have more to do in terms of welfare reforms and ensuring it always pays to be in work.”