Stoke-on-Trent college is the latest to get permission for a new look as part of the national Building Colleges for the Future programme.

The college has received Pounds 88 million from the Learning and Skills Council towards thepound;107m cost of developing its campuses at Cauldon and Burslem. Cauldon specialises in professional services and social care, while at Burslem the focus is on construction.

Graham Moore, the college’s principal, said: “Our proposal was greeted with universal approval by the LSC’s national capital committee - which is a major achievement in itself.

“This decision secures the funding we require to move ahead with this exciting opportunity for Stoke-on-Trent. The campus developments offer both the learning and wider communities a once-in-a-lifetime investment.

“The college is at the heart of the local communities and an important partner in the university quarter in Stoke-on-Trent.”

Aidan Ridyard, a director at Broadway Malyan, the architects’ company that will undertake the work, said: “The entire development will form relatively low- rise buildings.

“The narrow building depths will maximise daylight and ventilation efficiencies, and an eco-roof at Cauldon will enhance biodiversity along the canal.

“Further sustainable innovations include rainwater capture from the eco- roof, which will be used for toilet flushing, while the green eco-roof itself contributes to the building’s insulation.”

While the new development will receive pound;88m from the LSC, the college and its partners will have to find the remaining balance.

A detailed planning application will be submitted to Stoke-on-Trent council in early 2009, with work expected to begin in early 2010. It is due for completion by 2013.

The total remaining cost of redeveloping the national further education estate is estimated at between Pounds 4 and Pounds 5 billion, with colleges expected to find up to Pounds 2.7bn themselves.

The Building Colleges for the Future strategy also requires builders responsible for the work to offer training and apprenticeships to college students.