South Tyneside College has appointed a new director of estates to head up its multi-million-pound rebuild project.

Durham-born, Jim Petterson will be responsible for delivering the college's £103m new build project and ensuring it provides a state-of-the-art teaching facility for South Tyneside and beyond.

The 42-year-old has a wealth of experience in managing large construction projects of this type, having worked in senior positions in both the public and private sector.

He comes to South Tyneside College from global construction giant, Kajima, where he was responsible for operations on several multi-million-pound school and hospital new build projects.

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Mr Petterson also has extensive experience of grass-roots facilities management, having managed all maintenance work for 3000 Ministry of Defence families' quarters throughout Northern England, while working for Aqumen Services Ltd.

He is looking forward to the challenge of his new role and said: "Joining South Tyneside College to run an exciting project like this is a fantastic opportunity and something that I can’t wait to get my teeth into.

"My immediate priority is to familiarise myself with the master plan and draft designs and then to appoint the consultants who will help us achieve our vision for a state-of-the-art teaching and training facility.

"In my experience of running large construction projects, communication is the key, and I want to ensure that everyone involved in the project, from staff to students and the local community is consulted and kept up-to-date with progress."

(CD/JM)