The Solihull Council’s planning committee has approved plans for the new WMG Academy building this week. The new Academy, which will be built on the vacant site at the corner of Chelmsley Road and Conway Road, will eventually host 640 young engineers aged 14-19.

The WMG Academy for Young Engineers Solihull is a sister Academy to the WMG Academy in Coventry. It will initially take students at years 10 (aged 14) and year 12 (aged 16) with the first intake joining in September 2016. It is expected that, as with the WMG Academy Coventry, there will be huge demand for places.

Local students and parents interested in finding out more about the WMG Academy Solihull can visit the WMG Academy Coventry on 20^th June for a Taster Event which will run from 10am until 3pm and include taster lessons, demonstrations, tours of the building and a chance to speak to staff about the curriculum and enrichment activities. If you are interested in attending please visit the website at www.wmgacademysolihull.org.uk.

With an ethos of being “business-like and business led”, the academy will provide students with relevant GCSE and A level qualifications, specific engineering qualifications and an impressive range of partner companies will ensure that students leave prepared for the world of work.

The building itself will be more like a business than a school with flexible working spaces; specialist dedicated engineering facilities and a Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) suite.

There will also be space for business partners to come in and work alongside students, truly embedding business and education. Current partners for the WMG Academy Solihull include: Jaguar Land Rover, National Grid, Controls & Data Systems, ARUP, WMG and The University of Warwick. The Academy also works closely with the EEF (the Manufacturers’ Organisation) and WMMC (West Midlands Manufacturing Consortium) and Solihull MBC.

Kate Tague, who is currently Principal of the WMG Academy in Coventry, will take up a new role as Executive Principal – overseeing both the Solihull and Coventry WMG Academies. Stewart Tait, Director of Pastoral and Additional Educational Needs in Coventry, will take on the role of Associate Principal Designate of the new Solihull-based Academy.

Mrs Tague said: “We are absolutely thrilled to hear that planning application has been approved and are now very eager to break ground and start building the new Academy. We’ve had an amazing few years developing, building and launching the WMG Academy Coventry and are looking forward to offering similar provision to students in Solihull and Birmingham.”

Architect’s visualisations of the building can be found on the links below:

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Notes to editors:

For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact: Alison Rowan, Communications Manager, by email at a.rowan@warwick.ac.uk or by telephone on 024 7615 0423 or 07876 218166. Alternatively contact Peter Dunn, Director of Press & Policy on p.j.dunn@warwick.ac.uk or by telephone on 07767 655860.