SEVEN Tees Valley Further Education Colleges have formed a partnership called FEplus to ensure that together, they can oversee the best strategies for the benefit of education, training and economic growth.

FEplus consists of Cleveland College of Art and Design, Darlington College of Technology, Hartlepool College of Further Education, Middlesbrough College, Redcar and Cleveland College, Stockton and Billingham College and Teesside Tertiary College.

Under the title of FEplus, the colleges are already working on a series of joint ventures to ensure that education plays a key role in regional economic strategy.

As the new structure of post-16 education and training develops, the contribution FEplus will make, not only to education and training, but also to the local economy, is likely to become increasingly important in Tees Valley.

To highlight the importance of the role, the further education colleges have commissioned independent research to identify the economic impact of the group in Tees Valley.

The report was commissioned to provide the colleges with evidence to support their long-term aim of maximising the contribution they make to local economic development.

It found that in any one year almost 40,000 Tees Valley residents, or nine per cent of the adult population, were students at one of the seven colleges.

Around 2,600 people work for the colleges, and the colleges devote almost £37m each year to employing staff, 80 per cent of whom live in the Tees Valley.

The report stated: "This is a vast spending power into local households, which will in turn generate further employment.

"Only one commercial company in the whole of Tees Valley has more employees than the combined total of the seven colleges."

The colleges have a combined annual expenditure budget of close to £62m, according to the report: "A figure that would be enough to comfortably secure them a place in the top 50 Tees Valley companies".

It continues: "Around 40 per cent of this budget is spent on non-staff items each year, generating millions of pounds of business for suppliers, many of them small and medium sized local businesses."

The report concluded: "Individually and collectively, the Tees Valley colleges have a major impact on the local economy."