AN £11m grant to support the Barrow Learning Campus is set to be approved as the project reaches a ‘key point’.

Members of the cabinet for Westmorland and Furness Council are in line to approve plans to enter into a grant funding agreement of £11.17 million with the University of Cumbria to develop the Barrow Island Campus.

Councillors will also discuss proposals to give land to BAE Systems to facilitate the construction of the new University of Cumbria campus.

According to the report prepared for the cabinet meeting, the development of the campus is dependent upon obtaining the necessary rights to access the site. The council is set to give the land to BAE Systems through a deed of easement who will in turn transfer the requisite rights to the University of Cumbria.

The grant will be funded by money secured in the town deal agreement with government which will see £25 million of investment funneled into the town.

The report said: “The delivery of the project meets all the Council plan priorities. In particular, the focus on providing appropriate degree-level courses will support our aim to be ambitious for our children and young people, as well as ensuring that young people have enough opportunities to access to the best education.”

The University of Cumbria campus on Barrow Island seeks to create more than 1,400 places for students by 2031 on land provided by BAE systems.

Courses to be provided from the new campus include digital and cyber security, project management and logistics/supply chain management.

The report said: “The Barrow Town Deal Programme is now at a critical stage in delivery, with performance monitoring showing that financial slippage continues to be a key risk to the programme that will need to be carefully monitored going forward.

“At this stage, all projects are still reporting that they will meet the financial and outputs performance requirements for the Programme.”

Westmorland and Furness Council is set to approve the grant and the transfer of land at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday (November 14) at Penrith Town Hall.