Plans for new seven-storey teaching block unveiled by Halesowen College

The development will strip the inside of the landmark Trinity Point building on New Road to provide facilities for up to 700 students who could move in next year.

Halesowen College has now agreed on a deal to purchase the building which is currently functioning as a half-empty office space. As part of the plans, the first floor will be ripped out to make way for reception and a cafe, followed by classrooms and IT facilities on the remaining six floors.

A statement from Halesowen college said: “From reviewing the Halesowen Area Action Plan, the current building and layout offers a suitable opportunity for Halesowen College to create a strong presence on entrance into Halesowen town centre and redevelop an existing building that suits the opportunity identified within the local plan.

“The college currently delivers teaching over three sites – the main Whittingham Road Campus, Shenstone House on Dudley Road, Halesowen and a unit on the Coombs Wood Business park. Recruitment has been on a steadily upward trajectory for many years.

“This has been accelerated in recent years by the closure of Stourbridge College and a rising demographic trend in the local area. This has increased pressure on current resources which has not only proved challenging in terms of accommodating new students but has also proved problematic when the college wishes to rehouse existing students, in order to carry out crucial repairs/improvements to buildings.

“The purchase of Trinity Point will underpin a number of these objectives. The demographic trend in the area has put increasing pressure on accommodation at the main Whittingham Road site. The college needs to respond to the needs of learners by increasing capacity but also to be mindful of its responsibility to residents adjacent to the main campus.

“The provision of new high-quality teaching resources at Trinity Point will not only allow for an element of growth but, more importantly, will allow the college to decant learners from the Whittingham Road campus to Trinity Point.”

Developers say they hope to start work on the project, subject to planning permission, in the new year and hope to move some of the students in by September 2023.

Peter Icke of Gould Singleton Architects, the company responsible for the project said costs are still yet to be finalised. Mr Icke said: “The spending on there is all subject to what they can afford to do in the financial years as it varies.

“We want to get some of the work started as early as possible in the new year as we need to move students around on the college site to allow work to take place. We’d like to think we could have students in there by the start of term next year.”