The exciting new Wood Street campus of Barnet College is set to open and welcome students in September this year. Set in an ideal location in the town centre of High Barnet, it will be a landmark education centre for north London.

The state-of-the-art building will house courses in art and design, business and computing, health and social care, A levels, travel and tourism, and English as a second language (ESOL). There will be something for everyone, with full-time, part-time, higher education and short courses, and programmes for businesses and professionals.

Courses are open for applications – and some are already filling up with students keen to enjoy the new site and facilities.

From September, the college will occupy two main campuses: the new town centre campus in Wood Street, High Barnet, and the spacious vocational centre in Grahame Park, Colindale.

The Wood Street campus has been carefully designed for the town centre location, providing students with a light, modern and attractive environment. There are many green, environmentally-friendly features such as a sedum planted roof and ‘brise-soleils’ – wooden panels which protect windows and classrooms from the heat of the sun.

Roof lanterns allow natural northern light into the beautifully fitted art and design studios of the top floor. The classroom spaces go from wet to dry; facilitating such crafts as photography and developing; pottery with plaster and kilns; and glass making. There are dedicated areas for jewellery, work with wood and metal, fine art, fashion, sewing and cutting, and IT-based graphic design with Apple Mac computers.

The first floor of the building has the latest IT facilities including extensive open access areas.

The ground floor contains the learning resource centre with a full library of books, printed materials, electronic resources, and more open-access IT facilities. This area has a glazed wall to the garden, for maximum natural light and a pleasant feel. On the lower ground floor, there is a suite of science facilities with five specialist laboratories.

The centrepiece atrium has a social and community area with an internet café and gives access to an open courtyard with patio-style tables and chairs and outdoor recreation space.

The whole building is covered by a Wi-Fi network. Also on the ground floor is the main lecture theatre and refectory. A further space has a sprung floor and will be available for hire.

One of the first events in the new building will be the exciting A and AS level results day on Thursday, August 19.

For more information about courses at Wood Street Campus, or the college’s main vocational centre at Grahame Park, Colindale, telephone 020 8200 4000 or visit www.barnet.ac.uk and download a prospectus.