A £340,000 vocational education centre in Rossendale looks set to become a reality.

Almost 200 students in the first year alone will benefit from the joint venture at Stubbylee Hall, near Bacup, it is hoped.

Borough council bosses and Accrington and Rossendale College are partners in the new establishment, which will offer a range of full and part-time courses.

In submissions for the project, an Accrington and Rossendale College spokesman said: “The area has high levels of young people not in education or training and high levels of adult worklessness.

“Many young people from the Rossendale valley are unable or unwilling to travel out of the borough to access further education and training.

“The limited transport infrastructure and high cost of travel pose significant barriers.”

College bosses accept that the majority of the students at Stubbylee will probably be male, with construction, motorcycle engineering and horticulture on offer.

But a range of health and social care courses, generally attracting female learners, are already running at Bacup’s Maden Centre.

The plans have already been presented to headteachers across the Valley and will also go to the college’s full board on July 5.

An initial intake will arrive at Stubbylee in autumn and the centre will be fully operational by September next year.

l Supporters of the Royal Court Theatre had put together a bid to revamp the Rochdale Road venue.

While these proposals were not taken up, the neighbourhood forum has allocated £20,000, from the leisure hall fund, towards external enhancements.