Doncaster still waiting for decision on University Technical College
Doncaster's still waiting for a University Technical College - despite the government pledging support for vocational education in the budget
Business leaders in Doncaster say the government must back up its support for technical education with a new college for it there.
15 months after a bid for a University Technical College (UTC) was submitted there's still no decision from government, despite a commitment from the chancellor in the budget this week to support technical education.
A UTC is a secondary school, which is led by a sponsor university, and offers academic and vocational courses.
Dan Fell - from Doncaster Chamber - says it's frustrating:
"Doncaster submitted its original bid to the Department for Education now fifteen months ago so bearing in mind the amount of noise the government made in the budget announcement about technical education, it just seems perverse to us that we have a great opportunity to add value here but the business community is not being supported or let in by government.
"In recent months we've had pronouncements about industrial strategy, Northern Powerhouse and now technical education. Business wants to partner with government on all this and we have a fantastic opportunity to do so in the shape of the current University Technical College bid. Government just needs to green light that and let us help as a business community."
There are already two UTCs open in South Yorkshire - both in Sheffield.
Dan says there's a real need for a UTC in Doncaster to help provide the right skills that businesses need:
"Within our region, particularly looking at Sheffield, particularly looking at Leeds, the UTCs are flying and are highly regarded. That's something we need to bring to Doncaster because that will create pathways for our young people, support social mobility but crucially it will also align with other new institutions like the high speed rail college.
"There is a risk that if we don't solve some of those quite acute skills shortages in the near-ish future, that we might have something like a skills-led recession locally so we've got to get that pipeline of talent right so those businesses can keep growing, keep creating opportunities for the region."