Two Local Colleges Merge
The launch of the two colleges merging to form the RNN Group was celebrated yesterday with a cake cutting ceremony at both the North Notts College site and Dinnington Campus.
Governors, Senior Leadership Team and students were at the ceremony in the morning at the S81 Restaurant at North Notts site launching the RNN Group and again at the Dinnington Campus in the afternoon to celebrate RNN Training.
North Notts College and Rotherham College completed a merger on 1st February 2016 to create a new organisation called the RNN Group (Rotherham and North Notts Group), which will have a turnover in excess of £45m in 2015/16. It will retain its existing campuses at Rotherham Town Centre, Dinnington and Worksop and their existing names.
A major focus for the merged RNN organisation is to create enough scale to increase its responsiveness and offer to employers in Rotherham, Bassetlaw and more widely across the Sheffield City Region (SCR) and the D2N2 (Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire) Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), and beyond.
RNN Group Chief Executive, John Connolly, said:
“Business success and economic growth are vital to our region. RNN Group will play a key role supporting employers through providing apprenticeships, higher-level skills and training solutions, enabling our regional workforce to develop into the roles organisations need to be able to grow and succeed.”
Already one of the largest providers of apprenticeships in the SCR, one of the first steps the organisation has taken is to pool the employer-facing sales and liaison staff from both colleges into a central team operating under the banner of ‘RNN Training’.
RNN Deputy Principal, Phil Sayles said:
The RNN Group will also help employers through providing more higher-skill and higher education courses in Worksop and Rotherham, and at the Retford Post-16 Centre, in which it is a partner, adding to the thousand-plus enrolments at level 4 or above the organisation already has.“RNN Training has been created as a clear point of contact for employers who need bespoke or accredited training in their business, or who want to create apprenticeships. We want to be the first name employers in our area think of for these services.”
Chief Executive, John Connolly, concludes:
“By 2024, it is estimated that up to 40% of the existing workforce in our regions might have moved on or retired, and a big proportion of jobs growth until that date will also require higher level skills. RNN Group will move to provide clear progression pathways for adults currently in their early 20s, as well as the 16-18s, from all parts of society, to keep improving their skills and move into jobs that will be productive for them and the economy.”
“Our merged organisation will give us greater resilience and greater scope to invest and provide the training and courses employers, individuals and our region need. We will have greater influence, bringing benefits for local people, businesses and our communities.”