NEWS
Vision – Star Academies ’ director of education Lisa Crausby with Eton headmaster Simon Henderson .
GOVERNMENT GREEN LIGHT FOR ETON TEESSIDE
Middlesbrough will welcome a sixth form run by the worldrenowned Eton College after plans received government backing .
Mayor Chris Cooke has congratulated Eton and its partner , Star Academies , on its successful application for funding from the Department for Education ’ s Free School Programme .
Middlesbrough was chosen as one of three potential sites , alongside Dudley and Oldham , last year , when Eton head Simon Henderson and Star ’ s director of education Lisa Crausby visited the town .
Middlesbrough Council will now work with the government , Eton and Star to establish a town centre location for the new college , Eton Star Teesside .
Both institutions have committed to ensuring the college will focus on giving opportunities to young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and helping
PoW backs pupils ’ Cambridge visit
them to achieve places at the UK ’ s best universities .
Middlesbrough mayor Chris Cooke said : “ Young people around the Middlesbrough area already have a fantastic range of options for further education and the addition of Eton Teesside further strengthens our offer .
“ My focus now will be working with Eton and Star to make sure this college delivers for Middlesbrough and our young people .
“ The new college must form mutually beneficial links with our existing schools and colleges and help us in our shared goal of raising ambition and achievement .
“ I know Eton and Star want to make sure this new college is accessible to the most disadvantaged children in our town , and I wholeheartedly share that commitment .”
Tens of thousands of students already study in Middlesbrough town centre at Teesside University , Middlesbrough College campus and the Northern School of Art .
BUSINESS BITES
SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUEL Proposals for the first sustainable aviation fuel refinery of its kind in the North-East have been announced .
Global aviation services group and aircraft leasing firm Willis Lease Finance Corporation and its subsidiary Willis Sustainable Fuels ( UK ) are advancing plans for a commercial-scale Sustainable Aviation Fuel facility on Teesside .
The power-to-liquid refinery will convert feedstocks derived from industrial waste CO2 and green hydrogen produced from renewable electricity into aircraft fuel .
TECH CONFERENCE Software and technology experts from around the world have appeared in Middlesbrough to speak at an inaugural tech conference .
Middlesbrough Front End 2023 took place in July at Middlesbrough Town Hall and was the first event of its kind on Teesside .
During the day-long conference , 200 attendees heard from 10 speakers from household-name businesses such as Spotify , Monzo and Shopify .
Middlesbrough Front End has been holding regular events in the town since 2019 .
EXPANSION FAST-TRACK A growing Tees engineering and management services consultancy has fast-tracked its UK expansion by winning a contract to work on a multi-million-pound energy scheme .
Stockton-based Encora Energy is part of a team that has successfully commissioned a gas-fired peaking plant in Boston , Lincolnshire .
Often known as “ peakers ”, they are power plants that generally run only during periods of high demand for electricity .
The 6MW plant represents an investment of around £ 5m across its 15-year lifespan and will help to bolster Britain ’ s energy security .
More than 20 pupils from North-East primary schools had their minds opened to future possibilities on a science visit to Cambridge University , hosted by a Teessideborn astrophysicist .
Nine- and 10-year-old pupils from Stockton , Eston and Sunderland took part in the visit to King ’ s College , which was organised by Middlesbrough-born Carole Haswell , professor of astrophysics at the Open University , with support from Teesside ’ s Spark Tees Valley and the Power of Women campaign .
The visit included a guided tour of King ’ s College , a presentation at the Institute of Astronomy and a talk by Professor Haswell focused on her own experiences as a young girl growing up in Redcar and Saltburn .
Claire Preston , of the Power of Women
( PoW ) campaign , said the visit by the PoW ambassadors had seen “ bright young minds ” embark on “ a journey filled with inspiration and growth ”.
Bernadette Rizzi-Allan , head of St Bede ’ s Primary School , Stockton , added : “ We strongly believe that no matter what their background , children from the heart of Teesside can and should aspire to attend the best universities in the world and it was uplifting to see that Cambridge University openly encourages it .”
WORLD-FIRST PLANT The Wilton Centre , near Redcar , is the focus of a major recruitment campaign to select a team to operate a global-first recycling plant .
Centre occupier ReNew ELP has chosen the Stockton-based specialist px Group to run and maintain the plant , which will recycle waste plastics that until now have been considered unrecyclable , including multi-material films and flexible plastics plus rigid products such as pots , tubs and trays .
After weeks of interviews at the Wilton Centre , most of the more than 30 operational roles have been filled .
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