Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives of (a) Welbeck College and (b) other relevant stakeholders on the future of that college with regard to the decision to end the Defence Technical Officer and Engineer Entry Scheme.

The Defence Sixth Form College at Welbeck is run as a Private Finance Initiative on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and the Department engages regularly with the Contractor and Welbeck staff over the administration of the College and education of its students. This close cooperation will continue as the College enters its last year of operation to ensure the continued provision of an excellent educational experience and facilitate appropriate support to members of staff. Work is ongoing with the Armed Services to implement the future Defence STEM Undergraduate Scheme (DSUS) which is replacing the Defence Technical Officer and Engineering Entry Scheme.

The future of the Welbeck site is part of an ongoing study to consider whether it may be required for an alternative Defence purpose. Should that not be the case it will be placed on the open market at which time discussions would take place with relevant stakeholders including the Local Authority and Partners Across Government, to seek the best possible future use of the site. It is too early to say what the outcome might be, but early market testing identified credible prospective interest from the private education sector.