The Mayor of Huntingdon, Cllr Jay Dyne, was on hand last month to officially open the new Forklift Truck Training Centre at Cambridge Regional College’s Huntingdon Campus, designed to be used by apprentices, local companies and jobseekers. A welcome addition to the Huntingdon Campus range of facilities, the training centre will allow Cambridge Regional College to offer RTITB accredited training and licencing, an in-demand skill for businesses across the county and region. In attendance on opening day were a number of local businesses, jobcentre representatives and recruitment professionals, along with members of the college staff who have played a part in the creation process, including Forklift Instructor Simon Hunt. Cambridge Regional College Principal and Chief Executive Mark Robertson introduced the Mayor and took a moment to thank those who had helped make the opening possible. Mayor Jay Dyne then took centre stage, and expressed his delight at opening a key new resource for the region, “It is great to be back at the Campus to see the developments, investments and improvements that the leadership team at Cambridge Regional College have been implementing over these last few months” he said. “Our region needs a variety of skills and this college offers a great range of specialist training and vocational courses. These industry specific licences are an essential part of what local employers are looking for new recruits to hold, making this a hugely useful new service for the local community”. Cambridge Regional College Head of Employment Services, Maureen Horan, was also present for the opening celebrations, she said, “When we embarked on the journey to merge Cambridge Regional College with Huntingdonshire Regional College into one college with two great campuses, we knew it would require investment and new thinking. I would like to say a huge thank you to the staff that worked very hard and collaboratively to get the facility ready for accreditation, which we received first time with no actions”. After a ribbon cutting ceremony set to a round of applause, the Forklift Truck Training Centre was officially open to the public. The Mayor then took a tour of the facility and the rest of the Huntingdon campus. Cambridge Regional College offers a wide range of full-time, part-time and Higher Education courses from Construction and Engineering to Media and Computing Technologies, with campuses in Huntingdon and Cambridge. It is one of the top 10 colleges in the country and the largest Apprenticeship provider in the Eastern Region, with many opportunities to join great companies. The opening of the centre represents the latest in a line of successes the college has achieved in recent times. Key performance figures released recently place it first in the country (out of 198 colleges) in 19+ GCSE Maths A* – C pass rates. A centre of vocational excellence, Cambridge Regional College continues to grow and expand its role as a major seat of learning in the East of England.