Yvette Cooper Opens Castleford College Lagentium Building
Yvette Cooper opened Castleford College’s new Lagentium Building, the school’s construction facility in Castleford. The opening adds over 1,580 square metres of modern learning space for brickwork, carpentry, design, surveying, electrical installation, plastering and plumbing.
The building also gives learners three modern classrooms, including a professional digital suite, and an open workshop space on the ground floor for practical skills across wood occupations. Guests toured the facilities after the opening.
Lagentium Building at Castleford College
The new facility takes its name from the Roman fort Lagentium, historically located in Castleford. Yvette Cooper attended as Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and MP for Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley.
Sam Wright, principal and chief executive of the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group, said the project had been ambitious and described the new building as a space for high-quality teaching, apprenticeships and hands-on skills development. He said the aim was to support learners and staff for years to come and help bridge the construction skills gap.
Castleford learners and employers
The opening brought together employers, local authorities, education partners, governors and colleagues of the Heart of Yorkshire Education Group. Jake, a Level 2 Carpentry & Joinery student, said the facilities felt modern and well-equipped and that it was exciting to learn in a fresh, professional environment.
The practical test for Castleford is whether the building turns that space into more training places and stronger pathways into construction work. The new rooms, workshops and digital suite give the college the setting to do that now, not later.
