The proposals in the running for the second wave of the government’s flagship Institutes of Technology have been revealed. There are 13 bids going into the final stage for the £120 million of funding announced by education secretary Gavin Williamson at the Conservative Party conference two years ago. They will be whittled down to eight winners later this year. Gavin Williamson The first wave of 12 institutes were given the go-ahead in 2019. This second wave, which opened for applications last October, is intended to help the network of institutes “achieve nationwide coverage across all regions”. This pledge was later confirmed in the Skills for Jobs white paper, which promised to “expand our flagship Institutes of Technology programme to every part of the country by the end of this Parliament”. Institutes of technology are collaborations between colleges and universities, intended to deliver higher technical training in science, technology, engineering and maths subjects. In April 2019, the Department for Education announced it was looking into tendering for more institutes than the initial 12 after FE Week found there were none in the north-west and the east of England. Bids in this second wave include proposals for IoTs led by the north-west-based Blackpool and The Fylde College, and by the University of Suffolk in the east. The £120 million up for grabs will fund capital projects to create the institutes. A total of 15 bids were received in stage 1 of the process. Of those, 13 applicants have been invited to progress to stage 2 which will “test the viability, feasibility and deliverability of proposals in more detail”. Here is a list of the 13 bids, their lead sponsors, higher education partners, and sector specialisms: Lead Applicant of IoT proposal FE Core Partners HE Core Partners Sector Specialism Blackpool and The Fylde College Burnley College Lancaster and Morecambe College Nelson and Colne College Preston’s College Runshaw College Edge Hill University Lancaster University University of Central Lancashire Digital Engineering Health and Life Sciences Manufacturing Infrastructure (Built Environment, Energy and Transport) Cheshire College South and West Macclesfield College Reaseheath College Warrington and Vale Royal College University of Chester Agritech/Precision Agriculture Digital Engineering Health and Life Sciences Infrastructure (Built Environment, Energy and Transport) Manufacturing Chichester College Group Crawley College Brinsbury College Haywards Heath College North East Surrey College of Technology (NESCOT) Worthing College University of Brighton University of Sussex Construction Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Information & Communication Technologies DN Colleges Group Barnsley College Doncaster College (DN Colleges Group) Sheffield Hallam University The University of Sheffield, Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre Training Centre (AMRCTC) Construction Engineering and Manufacturing Digital Healthcare Sciences Furness College Furness College Kendal College Lakes College University of Cumbria Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Health, Public Service and Care Information and Communication Technology Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group Axia Solutions Ltd Burton and South Derbyshire College Newcastle & Stafford Colleges Group Keele University Construction, Planning and the Built Environment Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Information & Communication Technologies Solent University Brockenhurst College Eastleigh College Fareham College Havant and South Downs College Isle of Wight College University of Portsmouth Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Information and Communication Technology Science and Mathematics South Essex College Chelmsford College East Sussex College Harlow College Mid Kent College Plumpton College Anglia Ruskin University University of East Anglia Agriculture, Horticulture and Animal Care Construction, Planning & the Built Environment Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Health, Public Service and Care Information & Communication Technology Retail and Commercial Enterprise University of Derby Derby College Loughborough College Loughborough University Digital Engineering Infrastructure Manufacturing University of Hertfordshire North Hertfordshire College West Herts College The Royal Veterinary College Digital Infrastructure (Built Environment) Life Sciences University of Leicester Leicester College SMB Group – Stephenson Melton Brooksby College De Montfort University Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Information and Communication Technology Science and Mathematics University of Salford Ada, the National College for Digital Skills Bury College Tameside College Wigan and Leigh College Construction, Planning and the Built Environment Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Health, Public Service and Care Information and Communication technology University of Suffolk East Coast College The College of West Anglia Norwich University of the Arts Agriculture, Environment and Animal Care Construction Creative and Design Digital Engineering and Manufacturing Health and Science Transport and Logistics