The project being developed has the following aims:

• Provide a unique vocational training centre to support the development of the hospitality and catering, tourism and retail sectors in North Cornwall

• Combat social disadvantage by working with partners to provide a permanent base to promote opportunities for members of the local community to access further and higher education

• Provide infrastructure to aid collaboration for the introduction of Specialised Diploma courses in North Cornwall, ensuring that students in a rural environment have equality of access to vocational courses by developing a rural model for educational collaboration

• Address porosity of the Post-16 offer available in North Cornwall and consequently reduce the population who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) or those at risk of becoming NEET.

• Develop a spirit of enterprise and entrepreneurship so contributing to the regeneration and a sustainable future for the Launceston community

• Work with the local farming industry to ensure that young people are aware of the origins of food produce and the choices associated with food sources, with an emphasis on high quality produce with a low carbon footprint

• Provide a sustainable future for a landmark building in Launceston that is in danger of falling into decay with an aspiration to be carbon neutral

• To reduce the impact on the environment of potential transport of learners between centres

The advantages that we have in North Cornwall:
• Five successful secondary schools
• Willingness to collaborate for the benefit of young people
• Staffing in schools currently high skill level in traditional subjects
• A track record of high quality delivery through collaboration
• High quality land based specialist FE provision
• Strong local network of employers

The challenges that we face in North Cornwall include:
• Rural disparate population. Five secondary schools, four with sixth forms servicing the five centresof population
• One linear trunk link, (A30), but other road communication relatively poor
• No general FE provision in North Cornwall
• Poor access to public transport
• The development of staff in vocational skills
• Cross-county boundary movement of students
• All young people to have an entitlement to access all 17 Diploma lines by 2013
• Adequacy in terms of quantity of employers
• Low aspirations among learners from “indigenous” and ‘incoming’ backgrounds – further complicated by recent large scale arrival of migrant workers