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Bid for Institute of Technology Government funding is successful

December 20, 2021

Pink HSDC sign

A joint bid for educational partners across the Solent region to receive £120m of government funding to create a new Institute of Technology (IOT) has been successful.

HSDC is working in collaboration with Solent University, the University of Portsmouth and Fareham, Brockenhurst, Eastleigh and Isle of Wight colleges on the Solent Institute of Technology, which is progressing onto the pre-award stage.

The Solent Institute of Technology will specialise in maritime, engineering and digital, and the education providers are also working with Solent LEP and employers including IBM, Portsmouth International Port and the Royal Navy.

This is the second wave of the Institute of Technology programme, with the collaborations intended to deliver higher technical training in STEM subjects to fill gaps in the market, and this funding will be used to improve facilities across the region.

Mike Gaston, HSDC Principal and CEO, said: 

“This is tremendous news for the area and I am particularly pleased that HSDC will play a key part. The Institute of Technology in Maritime Technology, Engineering and Digital (IOTMED) aims to ensure the Solent LEP region transitions to a higher technically skilled economy. 

“This IOT will fuel the growth of the Solent maritime cluster as it makes a paradigm shift towards autonomy and green fuels, delivering support to the Government’s ambitions for a Green Industrial Revolution, Freeports, MoD investment, Maritime 2050, and the levelling-up agenda. 

“As a lead partner for the Portsmouth and Havant region, HSDC will be working to deliver a curriculum that will focus on excellence in the STEM higher technical skills required across digital technologies and engineering.”