Engineering is Grantham’s future – as well as its past

Excitement is building as work on Grantham College’s new Higher Education facility is officially underway.

Grantham College’s Institute of Technology (IoT), which opens in October 2020, will see the historic grade II-listed Stonebridge House converted into a state-of-the-art Engineering and Digital Skills hub.

As part of the Lincolnshire IoT partnership, Grantham College will receive £2.6m of funding from the Department for Education to fund the building project and specialist learning equipment.

Led by Dr Steven Peacock – Assistant Principal for Higher Education – the College successfully secured a share of £170m in funding to enhance high-quality HE Engineering and Digital studies in Grantham.

The College’s proposal was based on the town’s strong background in engineering, as well as the opportunity to fill skills gaps in the local industries.

Grantham’s origins in engineering can be traced back to Richard Hornsby, who died in 1864. 

The College’s Elsham House was named after the engineer’s birthplace.

Dr Peacock said of the project: “The Institute of Technology is designed to be employer-led and to meet the needs of the local area. 

“It was a really good opportunity to collaborate with Lincoln and other colleges in the region.”

Stonebridge House is currently being prepared for the refurbishment project, having most recently hosted the College’s Media department, before construction work begins in January next year. 

Stonebridge first link with education came in 1940 when girls from Camden High School moved there. Later it became Spittlegate Boys School until it was taken over in the mid-1950s by the police as divisional HQ.

Grantham College took over the site in the noughties.

Dr Peacock stressed that the IoT project will restore Stonebridge House “back to its former glory and make it a cutting-edge facility.”

Applications are open for IoT courses now.  

For more information on Grantham College’s Institute of Technology and wide range of HE courses, please contact Dr Steven Peacock at speacock@grantham.ac.uk.