THE Northern Echo can today exclusively reveal the first picture of a £10m North-East engineering centre of excellence, which will be led by a former ICI senior figure.

The South Durham University Technical College (UTC) will be built in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, to train thousands of youngsters in engineering and advanced manufacturing skills.

Bosses have also revealed Tom Dower, a former Teesside-based ICI chartered engineer, will be its principal.

The centre, designed by Newcastle-based Ryder Architecture, will stand close to Hitachi Rail Europe’s £82m 730-job factory.

Building work is expected to start in the summer, ahead of its opening in September 2016.

Mr Dower, a former Cambridge University engineering graduate, was previously vice-principal at Ashington High School, in Northumberland, where officials said he led an overhaul of pupil behaviour, attendance and safety.

He said he was looking forward to changing perceptions of the engineering industry through the UTC.

He said: “When we use the word engineer, too many people think about the man who comes to fix their washing machine or someone in greasy overalls holding a spanner.

“The reality is completely different.

“Industry needs a wide range of highly-skilled young men and women.

“Some will have great practical skills, some will be highly academic, some will be excellent project managers, some will be skilled designers and problem solvers, and some will be skilled programmers.”

Approved by the Government last year, the UTC is led by the University of Sunderland, with support from Hitachi and Aycliffe-based car parts maker Gestamp Tallent, and backing from the Department for Education as a state-funded but independent school.

Officials say it will help plug a regional skills gap, with the area expected to lose up to 8,500 engineers to retirement by next year.

Mr Dower, who was also an ICI project manager and manufacturing consultant, before training as a teacher at Goldsmith’s College, said its aims were clear.

He added: “The purpose of the UTC is very simple; to meet the challenges of the future we need many more talented young people coming into industry.

“We will provide skilled young people for employment in engineering and manufacturing.

“Industry plays a critical role in economic regeneration and the skills gap identified in South Durham and the rest of the North-East is a challenge I’m looking forward to having a role in overcoming.”

In a document previously seen by The Northern Echo, students between 14 and 16-years-old will have their studies split in two, with 60 per cent of work focusing on core subjects, such as maths, science and English, and 40 per cent on technical subjects.

For learners over 16, the divide will change, with 60 per cent devoted to level three (A-Level and Btec) studies in chosen technical areas and maths, with further potential for some to do two further A-levels.

The UTC aims to take on 240 pupils in its first year, made up of 120 year ten and 120 year 12 pupils.

That number is expected to swell to 540 in the 2017/2018 school year, including 300 year ten and year 12 pupils, and 240 year 11 and year 13 students, and 600 in 2018/2019, with 150 youngsters across every group.