Empey and Poots open new Further Education Campus Library in Cookstown
Employment and Learning Minister, Sir Reg Empey, and Culture Minister, Edwin Poots, today officially opened a new joint Further Education and library building in Cookstown.
The £2.4million project at Burn Road in the town replaces outdated Further Education and library facilities and forms part of the Department of Employment and Learning’s commitment to providing first class facilities to students. The joint project, which was announced in July 2003, has been operational since November 2006.
The Cookstown campus is part of the newly formed South West Regional College, operational since August 2007, which also has major campuses at Omagh, Dungannon and Enniskillen. The Omagh and Dungannon campuses have also recently benefited from new college buildings.
In his address to invited guests, Sir Reg said: “Very few things in life remain static and the Further Education sector continues to evolve and develop. Advancements in the training curriculum and the ever changing demands from employers all bring fresh challenges. I am confident that this new college development will help equip and enable the people of Cookstown to meet these challenges.”
The Cookstown campus has in excess of 700 students undertaking a range of full-time and part-time courses.
Sir Reg continued: “The investment in building this state of the art facility is not just about a building it is also about investing in people and the future of the community.”
The library, which is a partnership with the Further Education College, clearly demonstrates the vital support libraries provide for learning which is extremely important for quality of life and to the NI economy.
Minister Poots said: “The new £1million library is three times larger than the previous building and has treble the number of computers. Since opening its doors, visitor figures are almost double that of the old library. That is a thousand more people coming in every single week to learn, discover and communicate, proving the point that libraries do provide a vital service for users of all ages.”
Minister Poots concluded: “I am convinced that investment in modernising our public libraries is essential to support the needs of the community through free internet access, book groups and children and community events. Being close to the centre of the town this new library has the potential to become the hub of the community.”
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- The 16 local Further Education colleges merged into six new area-based “super colleges” from the 1 August 2007.
- East Tyrone College of Further and Higher Education (which includes the Cookstown campus) merged with Fermanagh College and Omagh College to form the new South West College.
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