Huge expansion plans would see new 'North Campus' created at Burnley College

The site would include an industry hub, three education buildings, a five-a-side pitch and a car park set among green parkland within the existing Princess Way campus.

It carries on from expansion work currently taking place at the college with a new four-storey teaching building due to be completed by the end of the year, and the college’s sports and fitness centre set to grow in size.

This new proposal was submitted to Burnley Council as a hybrid application.

Phase one is a full application incorporating an industry hub, a five-a-side pitch and an access road from Burnley College car park.

The second phase, an outline application to seek whether the scale of the development would be acceptable, covers three education buildings, a car park, landscaping and a replacement bridge to provide access from Holme Road.

The industry hub will accommodate teaching, training and advanced manufacturing spaces. Primary users will be students, but facilities and equipment will be made available to local businesses.

Part of the application reads: "The land to the North of the existing site was identified as the ideal location for an extension to the campus and would provide the College with medium-long term development capacity, the 'North Campus' as it has become known.

"Instead of seeing this opportunity as simply a large version of the existing campus, it is seen as a chance to re-think the character of a place for learning.

"Providing excellent teaching space is a prerequisite and ensuring buildings have a low energy demand with low emissions leading towards net zero carbon is a key objective of the design.

"In complete contrast to the existing campus is the integration of green landscape space and buildings. Although close to the town centre with its retail parks and car parks, the North campus is envisaged as a haven with buildings in soft landscape, where proximity to nature becomes part of the student experience at Burnley College.

"The vision is to continue to develop Burnley College as a leading educational institute that Builds Futures and Changes Lives. This development will allow the College to influence and improve the lives of even more people within the local and regional communities through outstanding education, trans formative experience, and innovative work with local businesses."

A Burnley College spokesman said: "As the number one college in the country [in the latest Government tables for student achievement aged 16-19] we are delighted to be submitting plans to further expand our £100million campus in order to continue to support Burnley and the wider community.

"Our expansion will further enable us to provide the very best education for school leavers, to deliver outstanding adult learning and university level study programmes and to further enhance our excellent work with employers across the region.

"With our focus very much on providing the very best opportunities for all we are excited to share more of our future plans over time, as we progress through these next few stages of planning and development."