The planned Marine Skills & Resource Centre also aims to replace and improve the current training facilities scattered around Newlyn by consolidating them in a single state-of-the-art building within Newlyn Harbour’s curtilage.
The initial designs by Poynton Bradbury Wynter Cole (PBWC) Architects, were appointed by Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners to work on the project. PBWC is a Cornwall-based and multi-award-winning firm that specialises in environmentally-responsive design.
Martin Tucker, Chair of the Penzance Town Deal Board said: “The new Marine Skills & Resource Centre project is a fantastic opportunity to revitalise the local marine industry and reaffirm Newlyn’s reputation as a centre of excellence. The proposed building will provide high quality training, foster collaboration and innovation, and help to create and sustain jobs in the fishing and marine sectors that have faced challenges in recent years.”
“Newlyn Harbour has been at the heart of Newlyn and Cornish fishing for centuries,” comments Chair of Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners, Rob Wing. “As skills and technologies have developed and changed, so has Newlyn Harbour and the community we are a part of. Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners are honoured to continue this journey and the planned Marine Skills & Resource Centre will not only provide access to modern training facilities and spaces for those working within the fishing and marine sectors, both now and in the future, but also enable them to continue to develop and change, keeping Newlyn at the heart of Cornish fishing and the wider maritime industry.”
Thalia Marrington, Cornwall Councillor for Newlyn said: “Having a centre of excellence for learning and development right here; being able to recruit, train and retain a workforce locally will be of huge benefit to the local community. A resilient and agile workforce will be crucial in creating a strong and sustainable future for the fishing industry. Opportunities abound within the wider marine sector too and this new building will be the focal point to drive and lead innovation. It is great to see Newlyn firmly facing forwards.”
In other fishing industry news the UK awards GBP 3.9 million of seafood industry projects through UK Seafood Fund.
The Maritime Bridge Simulator at the University of the Highlands and Islands The U.K. Department of Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has awarded GBP 3.9 million (USD 4.7 million, EUR 4.5 million) to seafood projects in the United Kingdom.The funding, awarded through the GBP 100 million (USD 121.8 million, EUR 115.2 million) U.K. Seafood Fund, will go to projects to improve the quality of training facilities to both upskill the workforce and promote seafood careers and to projects building new and improved fishing infrastructure. The U.K. Seafood Fund was established to support the long-term future and sustainability of the nation’s fisheries and seafood sector.
“We have already seen the great success that funding from the UK Seafood Fund has contributed to - from upgrading ports and aquaculture facilities to creating innovative training programs to attract fresh blood into the sector,” U.K. Fisheries Minister Mark Spencer said in a release.
The funding, DEFRA said, includes GBP 3 million (USD 3.6 million, EUR 3.4 million) which will go to the Scottish White Fish Producers Association to build a “Scottish Seafood Centre of Excellence” to replace the current temporary training space the association is using with a permanent facility. The new facility will include purpose-built classrooms, technology demonstration spaces, and facilities for blended training, DEFRA said.
Scotland will also receive funding for upgrading the Maritime Bridge Simulator at the University of the Highlands and Islands’ campus, located in the Shetland Islands, Scotland.
“Our members and the wider seafood sector are delighted at the award of GBP 3 million pounds from the Defra training infrastructure fund, which will allow us to build a seafood Centre of excellence at the very heart of our fishing community,” Scottish White Fish Producers Association Chief Executive Mike Park said. “The Centerwill be the delivery point and hub for both onshore and offshore training supported by classroom and virtual learning and will provide an ideal base to help stimulate recruitment to the seafood sector.”
Other projects receiving support include refurbishing training facilities in Portavogie, Northern Ireland; and refurbishing facilities in Grimsby, U.K. to create a new Seafood School.
“Today’s investment will help to support the industry so that our existing and future workforce is equipped with the necessary skills and facilities to join the sector and benefit from the brilliant opportunities that are available to them with a career in seafood,” Spencer said.
The U.K. Seafood Fund was originally slated to come to a close in 2024, but was given an extension until 31 March, 2025 in August 2022.