§ Rev. Martin SmythTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what factors led to the decision to close the Boucher Road technical training centre in south Belfast and to build a new centre two miles away at Springvale;
(2) if he will list the number of students attending courses at each of the technical training centres in the Greater Belfast area in each of the past three years;
(3) if he will list the locations, student capacity and catchment area of technical training centres in the Greater Belfast area;
(4) what plans he has made to provide technical training for students from south Belfast once the Boucher Road training centre is closed;
(5) what will be the cost of the construction of the new technical training centre at Springvale in west Belfast; and what are the projected annual running cost;
(6) what are the annual running costs of Boucher Road technical centre in south Belfast.
§ Mr. AncramResponsibility for the subject in question has been delegated to the Training and Employment Agency under its chief executive, Mr. Julien Crozier. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
766W
Technical training centres and catchment area Capacity 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 Occupancy 1994–95 to date Boucher Road Largely west Belfast—small minority from north and south Belfast and Lisburn district council areas. 240 152 131 177 159 Dundonald East Belfast and Ards, Castlereagh and North Down district council areas. One course, contractors plant, draws trainees from all over Northern Ireland due to its specialised nature. 240 189 176 222 166 Letter from J.S. Crozier to Rev. Martin Smyth dated 28 November 1994:
You have asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland six questions, all of which are concerned with the planned closure of Boucher Road Training Centre in 1996 and the provision of a new facility at Springvale.The Secretary of State has asked me as Chief Executive of the Training and Employment Agency, which has responsibility for these matters, to reply. I will deal ;with all of your questions under a number of main headings.Bouchewr Road
The decision to close Boucher Road was taken in the light of cost, existing capacity and demand, principally the latter. Boucher Road has a target capacity of 240 and currently has 185 trainees, of whom 80 per cent. come from Catholic West Belfast, and some 2 per cent. from South Belfast.There are already sufficient YTP and adult training places in the catchment area of Boucher Road. The continuation of that centre, together with the arrival of a new Springvale facility, would result in considerable over provision in the West Belfast area.The total running cost of Boucher Road for the last financial year was £1.25 million for a capacity of 240 places.Training Centres in Greater Belfast
Details of Training Centre provision in the greater Belfast area are in the attached annex.South Belfast
Given the low numbers involved there is ample provision in the other Belfast and Lisburn Training Centre for anyone from South Belfast who does not wish to travel to Springvale. However, if at any time in the future we were experiencing significantly increased demand from that area, we would consider how best to meet that demand.Springvale Training
767WIn 1990 a review of the organisation of training in the Springfield/Lower Falls area of Belfast was carried out by consultants. The main recommendation was that a new training organisation should be established in the area which would embrace both adults and young people, promote complementarity and avoid duplication. In order to develop such a capacity in the heart of that area and to provide a community focus in the re-development of the old Mackies' site at Springfield Road the Agency, along with Making Belfast Work is to provide a new hitech skills training facility.Springvale, which will be a private non-profit making company, plans to provide enhanced opportunities for individuals from the area to develop their skills in the manufacturing and engineering industries. This in turn is aimed at attracting inward investment to that area.The project is being funded through the Making Belfast Work Initiative and will cost in total some £4.5 million. Estimated annual running costs for the first 3 years fall within the following ranges for a planned capacity of 350 places:I hope that you will find this information helpful.
- Year 1: £841,000–£ 917,000
- Year 2: £1,029,000–£1,133,000
- Year 3: £1,136,000–£1,287,000
Technical training centres and catchment area Capacity 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 Occupancy 1994–95 to date Felden North and west Belfast and Newtonabbey and Carrickfergus district council area. Small minority from Antrim and Larne areas. One course, heavy vehicle repair, draws trainees from all over Northern Ireland due to its specialised nature. 260 162 195 263 251 Lisburn South Belfast and Lisburn district council area. Small minority from Banbridge and Antrim areas. Lisburn has a number of specialised courses, mainly at technician level, and these draw trainees from all over Northern Ireland. 150 117 131 128 108