A PURPOSE-built training facility for teachers who want to work in Catholic schools was officially opened in Southampton.

The Primary Catholic Partnership (PCP), which has always been based at the Holy Family Primary School, has now upgraded its training facilities to a permanent, larger facility.

The upgrade will enable the PCP to run a wider selection of new courses, including the “early years” course that prepares teachers in training for nursery schools.

Director of the PCP, Paul Haslam, said: “We have turned our temporary training facility into a much larger, permanent facility within Holy Family.

“We will now run more than one course and we also hope to work with more primary schools.”

Having been established for 13 years, the PCP has maintained an “outstanding” Ofsted report for eight years and, according to the “Good teacher training guide”, is currently in the top five per cent of teacher training providers in the UK.

The new building was officially opened by the Bishop of Portsmouth, Philip Eagan, who said: “The new building is a tremendous testament to the work done by the partnership.”

The PCP was set up in 1999 by Catholic primary schools in the Diocese of Portsmouth to train quality primary school teachers, keen to work in Catholic schools.

It provides school-centred initial teacher training, based on a Catholic philosophy of education.

Graduates are recruited from England, Wales and Ireland.

The partnership enjoys a close relationship with the Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth and St Mary’s University College, Twickenham, who accredit the course. Last summer, 100 per cent of graduates successfully found work.