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The decades old and not-fit-for-purpose education buildings at Les Ozouets are finally being torn to the ground.
Jersey-based contractors Rok got to work today removing the roof and knocking down walls of what was the Guernsey College of Further Education Les Ozouets campus and the St Peter Port School for many years.
It’s making way for the integrated education campus of the Guernsey Institute, which brings together the college, the Guernsey Training Agency university centre, and health and social care studies.
Education leaders were beaming on site as years of promises and several false starts finally came to a heed.
TGI Executive Principal Jacki Hughes said she wanted to get inside the excavator herself but was prevented due to lack of training and due to health and safety.
Watch: A walk around of the site as contractors get demolishing.
The future of the site has been in limbo for several years after States decisions to-and-froed over the direction of secondary and post-16 education and the prioritisation of major building projects, most recently with the redevelopment of the hospital taking political precedence.
But now the States has agreed funding for the first phase of the Les Ozouets campus featuring the TGI building and the foundations for a future sixth form centre, which will free up other education sites at Delancey and Les Countanchez for other uses.
Asbestos has already been removed from the site, with demolition works expected to complete in late August. A tender is being prepared seeking firms to build the campus, with a targeted moving-in date of early 2027.
Pictured (L-R): Dr Louise Misselke, Jacki Hughes, Dr Tracey McLean, Simon Le Tocq and Ashley Dupre, Head of Education Capital Projects.
Executive Directors of the Institute gathered to watch work get started and spoke of their satisfaction and relief for staff and students that progress was now visibly being made.
Ms Hughes said “this is a really significant visual representation of the future for us taking down the old building in anticipation of our new building being erected.
“While there's been three different organisations delivering technical, professional and vocational learning on the island, by coming together we can share what the real strengths that we've got to make sure that we got career paths in place whether you're 16 and leaving school, we will be able to map your career on Guernsey.”
Dr Louise Misselke, Principal of the College and executive director of TGI, said “the college obviously provides full time education for people post-16 leaving the secondary schools, and we also provide apprenticeships, so that will all be coming together as part of this new build”.
Simon Le Tocq, CEO of GTA, said “we want to become a one stop shop for education locally and at the GTA we look after professional education. So lifelong learning is really, really important and we're working with all industries to ensure that they've got the skills that they need for the future workforce”.
Dr Tracey McLean, head of the Institute of health and social care, will be heading up the university centre element of the TGI.
“Currently we run a number of higher education qualifications, and we hope that we can expand on that for not only the young people of the island, but also for people who want to change career,” she said.
A time-lapse of the project is in the works.
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