UTC@MediaCityUK
The Department for Education announced in May 2012 that they supported the development of a new University Technical College at MediaCityUK, Salford Quays, which opened in September 2015.
This landmark UTC works directly with some of the most prestigious names in the digital and media industry to revolutionise the way young people develop crucial skills and pathways to jobs.
The MediaCityUK UTC came about through a comprehensive network of partners across education and industry – led by the Aldridge Foundation, the University of Salford, and the Lowry.
The UTC specialises in creative and digital industries as well as developing an entrepreneurial mindset amongst students. One of the key things that makes the UTC model special is the direct link with industry, giving students the chance to work with partners in MediaCityUK. The UTC’s employer partners since opening include organisations such as ITV, Cisco, Flix, UKFAST, Unity, dock10, Oracle, Deluxe, Panasonic and Adobe. Alongside these students have also had the chance to work with Apple, Google, Autodesk and the BBC.
The UTC building was formally opened by BBC Director-General Tony Hall, who said:
“This college is nurturing the next generation of creative talent – the next generations of digital innovators. You can just sense a real entrepreneurial spirit, here and there’s a great sense of adventure already.”
The UTC Curriculum has been developed to respond to employer demand, drawing from the skills of partners across the area. It provides a new opportunity for young people from Salford and the wider North West area, with intake growing over the course of the next eight years to take 720 students by 2020.
The UTC joined the Aldridge Education multi-academy trust in September 2018. It retains strong partnerships with the University of Salford and the Lowry, both original sponsors of the college.
In 2019’s exam results over 50% of A-Level and vocations qualification passes at the UTC were at A*-B or equivalent Distinction* - Distinction grades and GCSE results improved on every measure.
In November 2020 Colin Grand was appointed Principal of the UTC.
