Securing investment for Cheltenham communities like Hesters Way was what drove me to go into politics. Talent is spread equally across Cheltenham, but opportunity should be too. So last week I was delighted to be invited to see for myself the results of the latest £3m Government investment into Gloucestershire College’s Hesters Way campus.
The money has delivered a major engineering project to enable the college to become the first in the country to move to 100% renewable energy, slashing bills and emissions at the same time.
It has been possible thanks to a major technical project, involving drilling twenty boreholes under the college car park. Those combine to create a colossal ground-source heat pump, harnessing the earth’s heat and operating like a fridge in reverse. To get a sense of the scale of the project, each hole is over double the depth of Cheltenham’s Eagle Tower.
This project follows a separate £3m investment by the Government into Hesters Way’s Advanced Digital Academy (ADA) at GlosCol. From the wall screens depicting in real time the source and target of global cyber attacks, to the ‘attack’ and ‘defend’ rooms for capture the flag competitions, the ADA is a state-of-the art facility. It is also the base for the UK's first-ever GCHQ/NCSC-accredited cyber skills course.
Meanwhile, upstairs in the very same GlosCol building is Hub8, an office facility used by for cyber start-ups to build their businesses, backed by a further £1m in Government grants.
I believe in a town where young people are able to walk around in our local community and see the bright lights of opportunity on our doorstep. GlosCol, working with Government and the cyber sector, can help provide that better future for all young people – including those who may not have had the easiest start in life, but are prepared to work hard to fulfil their potential.
Hesters Way in on a better path. With focus, care and determination it will stay on it.
[Column first published in the Glos Echo]