A new state of the art science, technology, engineering and maths centre in Bury St Edmunds which is hoped to create the UK’s own Silicon Valley has been officially opened.
The new STEM campus is part of West Suffolk College and was developed to train the creators, programmers and innovators of tomorrow from GCSE level through to degrees.
The new £8m project houses 4,300 sqm new teaching facility comprising of two seminar rooms, 10 classrooms, six laboratories, learning hubs, social spaces and a business centre.
The new college campus, its third in total, is based at the former Vitec site on Western Way and opened to students in September.
The project is at the heart of the college's plans to create an "education triangle" - which also includes construction of the Abbeygate Sixth Form in the grounds of King Edward VI School opposite.
West Suffolk College principal, Dr Nikos Savvas said that he hoped that the centre would bring the best technology minds to the East.
"We want to create the Silicon Valley of the UK here," he said.
"We are working with anyone who is anyone in the technology industry to make this a centre of excellence.
"The area from Oxford to Norwich and down to London is the same size as Silicon Valley and we hope to have the same productivity from this area as in the US.
"It's not just Suffolk. We want to expand to Norfolk and Cambridgeshire. We want to bring the best start-ups in the Eastern regions here. Who knows we may have the next big tech company starting in Suffolk.
"This is the first year here and we have 829 engineering and digital students at the site."
The 5.5-acre site redevelopment has been made possible through investment from the New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), who has invested £7m through the Growth Deal Programme.
The newly-formed West Suffolk Council has also been involved in driving the development forward.
Dr Savvas added: "We want to train the industry leader today and also industry leaders for the future.
"This is one of the most talented areas of the UK and we want to show that.
"I would like to thank all of our partners for their support."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here