THE new engineering block at Duchy College Stoke Climsland has been officially opened in a small ceremony, attended by some of the founding fathers of the college.

The Daniel Building is the first part of the Future Farm project to be completed; a £10-million scheme, including a new higher education hub and state-of-the-art dairy unit.

Director of rural economy for the Cornwall College Group Dr Phil Le Grice said: 'This official opening marks our commitment to investing in education and research in the land-based industries of Devon and Cornwall.

'The Daniel Building is part of our Future Farm project — a project which is vitally important to the continued growth of the South West rural economy.'

The Daniel Building, which is named after Vernon Daniel, one of six key figures behind the foundation of the college back in 1986, is a converted potato store and contains a series of high-tech agricultural enginee-ring workshops and modern teaching rooms.

At the ceremony, Mr Daniel spoke about how proud he was to be part of Duchy College and to see how the college has developed and student numbers have grown since its inception.

Funding for the project has come from a number of sources to include the Cornwall College Group and the Garfield Weston Foundation.

Dr Le Grice added: 'I would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to the Garfield Weston Foundation for their help in enabling us to refurbish this wonderful listed building, bringing it back to life as a valuable resource for environmental and land-based learning.'

The Garfield Weston Foundation is a family-founded, grant-making trust which has been supporting charities across the UK for more than 50 years.

Organisations which are supported range from small community groups to large, national institutions that have effective solutions to helping those most in need.

Dr Le Grice said: 'This is another step towards making the South West the heart of agricultural research and innovation.

'Plans are already being looked at for the new dairy unit, stage two of the Future Farm project, which will pioneer research into the dairy industry and efficiencies that could help boost the profitability of farms.'