Milton Keynes College is looking at moving to city centre site

Milton Keynes College is looking seriously at a plan to close its three campuses in Bletchley, Woughton and Silbury Boulevard, and move lock, stock, and barrel to the city centre.
MK CollegeMK College
MK College

The plan was aired at a council meeting on Wednesday evening where councillors quizzed principal Dr Julie Mills on the plans which would affect some 10,070 students.

Dr Mills told the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee that having a single campus in the heart of MK would be easier to get to for students in the outlying districts of the borough.

The central campus would also be closer to potential employers and the new MK:U, which is still in the planning stage.

MK CollegeMK College
MK College

“In a central location we can be one college for the whole city,” she said. Dr Mills also revealed that the vacant Saxon Court had already been looked at but was ‘unlikely to be a feasible option.’

Meetings have already taken place between the college and the council at a senior level and Dr Mills said the authority’s officers have been working ‘creatively’.

“We can’t do this on our own,” she said. “We can only do this with the full support of the council.”

Bletchley Park ward councillor Cllr Elaine Wales believes that the college’s Bletchley Campus could become the college’s hub, not the city centre. She said: “With East West Rail coming, Bletchley could be easier to get to than CMK.”

Dr Mills conceded that developments and land availability could mean that the ‘centre of gravity’ is shifting and added that Bletchley could be considered but she added that a central location would be ‘right for the city’.

“We won’t rush into a decision, we will look at what is possible, so we are future-proofed.”