Businesses Encouraged to Make Use of Superb New Facilities
The new Training & Enterprise Centre in Cambuslang precinct offers a range of training and support facilities for local companies. These include:
- conference and meeting facilities
- training suites, including up-to-date cabling and hardware to support IT training
- a high quality commercial kitchen for catering trainers
- special needs training
- pre-vocational and vocational training programmes
In addition, the facility, which officially opened in August, 2000 houses vocational training organisation, ProsPects for Employment, and acts as a ‘drop in’ centre for use by the local community. A creche and cafe is also available for both centre users and non users.
Funding for the £1.5 million facility came from South Lanarkshire Council (£711,036), Scottish Enterprise Lanarkshire (£200,000) and the European Regional Development Fund (£588, 964) through Strathclyde European Partnership.
Councillor Eddie McAvoy, leader of South Lanarkshire Council, said: “This is an important new facility both for businesses and the local community. It will provide companies with access to training and business service provision, while giving the populace vocational and non-vocational training on their doorstep.
“We recognise there has been a real need for this type of facility for some time and are delighted to have been so involved in bringing it to Cambuslang. Of course, we can’t take all the credit for this superb new centre. This project has been a true example of partnership working at its best. Apart from the contributions of our partners, Scottish EnterpriseLanarkshire and Strathclyde European Partnership, there was a tremendous input from the local community and training providers. Without their help, this centre may never have been built.”
Councillor McAvoy said another benefit of the new centre was the positive cosmetic effect it already has on Cambuslang precinct.
He said: “Over the past three decades, Cambuslang precinct has been allowed to decay. Since South Lanarkshire Council was formed nearly five years ago, we have been working towards improving standards in the precinct. The formation of this new centre has already had a tremendous effect on the look of the precinct which can only benefit the town.”
History
The concept of a new training and
enterprise centre in Cambuslang was highlighted in a training audit
commissioned by Cambuslang & Rutherglen Training Forum in 1997. It
confirmed the need for such a centre and recommended it be situated in a
central accessible location in the town.
Plans for the Cambuslang Training & Enterprise Centre were then worked up by an independent design team who carried out the subsequent refurbishment and building work.
Aims
The main aims of the new centre are
simple. Through providing these new facilities, the partners envisage that:
- by offering training provision to the unemployed and supporting local small and medium sized businesses, new jobs will be created
- by improving the look of the precinct, the local economy will benefit
- by providing quality facilities, local businesses will be able to develop in areas such as staff training and new companies will be created
Management
Overall management of the
centre will be carried out by a management board consisting of members of the
Training Forum, which is made up of representatives from South Lanarkshire
Council, Scottish Enterprise Lanarkshire, as well as local training providers,
residents and businesses.
The centre will be managed day-to-day by Centre Manager, Drew Campbell, and central support staff.
Drew said: “Already we have established excellent open learning and computer resources; first class conference and meeting facilities; a range of job-related training programmes; IT training; and much more. South Lanarkshire College are also providing several evening classes here.....and that’s only the beginning!
“I believe the centre will attract a diversity of further and higher education providers to the area. It will also give new enterprises a high-profile supported environment from which they can launch their businesses.
“Above all, the centre will be welcoming and accessible to all and bring a range of opportunities to the people and businesses of this area. That can only be a positive boon for the local economy.”
Business South Lanarkshire - Summer 2000