A COLLEGE is to join the fast lane of the information super highway with a new £1million multi-media building.

The two-storey state-of-the-art complex at St Mary's College, Shear Brow, Blackburn, will house eight classrooms to provide IT and media courses.

Attached to the existing building, facilities will include dedicated IT and media classrooms, drop-in resource areas, video editing, video conferencing and superfast internet access.

The project is a joint venture funded by the college and the Learning Skills Council (LSC), which contributed £261,100 to the £996,000 cost.

Building is set to start on Monday, February 4, with a projected completion date of October 28, making it ready for use in the next academic year.

The Catholic college, which has 900 students aged 16 to 19, covers Blackburn, Burnley, Darwen, Hyndburn, Chorley and the Ribble Valley and offers courses up to degree level in conjunction with Liverpool's Hope University.

Sarah Flanagan, head of marketing at the college, said: "This is not only for the benefit of the students, but the community as well. We run an awful lot of adult classes and an incredible amount of computer classes.

"It's a very exciting development and the first building on this site since our sports hall went up in the late 1970s. We have obviously had expansion, but this is a big investment."

She added that the college was seeking sponsorship from multi-media companies for equipment, including computers and multi-media resources.

"It's the biggest venture we have had for 20 years and it's really to accommodate demand -- our numbers have grown."

Staff and students at the college are planning to bury a multi-media time capsule in the foundations of the new building and the college has launched a competition inviting former students and members of the public to suggest items for inclusion.

The capsule will contain CDs, DVDs, a Powerpoint presentation, a copy of the Bible, a Harry Potter book, a mobile phone, Euros, and the Hear'Say album.

Suggestions can be made by calling Sarah on 580464 and there will be a prize for the best idea. For more sponsorship information, contact Michael Finley, college principal, on 580464.