Lincoln College brings £185m to local economy, report finds

Lincoln College brings £185.5 million per year to the local economies in Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire, according to a report.

The report by EMSI (Economic Modelling Specialists International) assessed the economic impact of Lincoln College on students, society, taxpayers and the local business communities in Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire.

It also found that the majority of the sum is attributed to the skills, training and support the college offers to local employers, as it provides staff development and qualified workers.

Lincoln College works with 1,200 businesses to deliver training programmes such as apprenticeships, assessment-led qualifications in the workplace and short courses.

These are in addition to GCSEs, A-levels, degrees, and vocational qualifications such as BTECs and NVQs.

The college is also a large-scale buyer of local goods and services, spending over £12.5 million in 2011-12 with suppliers.

Lincoln College’s Principal and Chief Executive John Allen said: “Lincoln College is the cornerstone of skills and training in Lincolnshire and the experiences that our students receive at the college have the power to shape the rest of their lives and put them on the path to becoming happy and productive members of society.

“They add value to local businesses by increasing their level of outputs and generating a need for further jobs, creating additional income.

“The college’s mission is to deliver excellence to learners and as long as we continue to do this, all other stakeholder groups will see the positive impacts the college has, not just on the economy but on the local communities too.”

Report analysis

— Extract of analysis from the EMSI report

Lincoln College employed 882 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff in 2011-12. Staff costs amounted to £29.8 million, much of which was spent in the Lincoln College Service Area to purchase groceries, clothing, and other household goods and services.

The College is itself a buyer of goods and services and spent £12.5 million to support its operations in 2011-12. This expenditure further benefited many local suppliers in the Lincoln College Service Area.

The net impact of staff and College expenditure in the Lincoln College Service Area comes to approximately £42 million in added income in the regional economy each year.

Many of Lincoln College’s learners stay in the Lincoln College Service Area. Their enhanced skills and abilities bolster the output of local employers, leading to higher regional income and a more robust economy.

The accumulated impact of former Lincoln College learn- ers who are currently employed in the regional workforce amounts to £141.7 million in added income in the Lincoln College Service Area’s economy each year.

Lincoln College learners who relocate to the Lincoln College Service Area from outside of the area spend money at local shops to buy books and supplies, purchase groceries, rent accommodation, pay for transport, attend sporting events, etc.

The expenditure of Lincoln College’s non-local learners annually adds approximately £1.8 million in income to the Lincoln College Service Area’s economy.

Altogether, the economic contribution of Lincoln College to the local business community in the Lincoln College Service Area is £185.5 million each year.

Total added income created by the College and its learn- ers is equal to 0.5% of the total economic output of the Lincoln College Service Area and represents roughly 8,612 average wage jobs.