A new partnership between Falmouth Marine School and Cornwall Marine Network will create a new centre of excellence for marine engineering.

A memorandum of understanding was signed last week at a special open event, where business leaders, industry partners and specially invited guests were given a chance to tour the college's refurbished facilities.

CEO of Cornwall Marine Network, Paul Wickes, said: “The signing of this document is the culmination of several years of work. Our ambitions for joint delivery will allow us to ensure the highest level of quality, enabling us to reach more business benefitting the regional economy and the fantastic marine sector in Cornwall.”

This partnership brings together the two biggest providers of apprenticeships in the marine sector and is based on a shared vision to support and strengthen Cornwall’s position as one of the leading centres of marine excellence in the UK and Europe.

Head of Falmouth Marine School, Justin Olosunde, added: “Both organisations are committed to growing the marine sector of Cornwall and the wider South West; we share an ethos of delivering world-class training and working together strengthens our offer. Falmouth Marine School, following its redevelopment, can now offer industry leading facilities and we are delighted to be working with the Cornwall Marine Network.”

Funding for the £3.6 million pound refurbishment of Falmouth Marine School came from a range of sources including the Skills Funding Agency and the European Regional Development Fund. The site on Killigrew Street now features a brand new wet laboratory, new classrooms, open plan library and an industry leading marine engineering workshop.

Mr Wickes said: “This is such a fantastic facility at Falmouth Marine School and I believe if you want to do world-class business in the marine sector, you have to have world-class facilities and we certainly do now.”

The business open event was an opportunity for stakeholders like Fal River, Exeter University, Mylor Yacht Harbour, Vetus UK and a host of local councillors, to get behind the scenes and explore the site.

Sales director of Vetus UK, Richard Winter, said: “I’m very impressed; I think that Falmouth Marine School has one of the best equipped workshops for marine engineering in the country. There is a great variety of old and new engines for students to work on, I’m particularly impressed with the ‘ship in a box’ which contains everything you would find on a commercial vessel and they are all live; which is great experience for the students and a fantastic training tool.”

Anyone wanting to see the world-class facilities on offer at Falmouth Marine School, there is an open day and course information event on Saturday, April 23. For more information on the range of apprenticeships available across the Cornwall College Group call 0845 22 32 567 or go to cornwall.ac.uk.