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employability. The college is at the heart of addressing all of
these. At the time of her appointment, McGivern felt that the
close bond of affinity with the city was missing. The college was
in difficulty and needed transformation and reconnection. Over
time, things, however, have changed significantly. The college has
roughly 20,000 students and is now a major player in the city;
widely recognised as an anchor at the centre of the city region
skills system, and at the centre of the regeneration of the Titanic
Quarter.
Coleg Gwent, on the other hand, has more of a regional identity,
embracing the city and unitary authority of Newport, but
extending to surrounding rural areas. This gives the college a
different profile to that of a metropolitan college in that the
various client groups often come from disparate geographical
spaces. Guy Lacey, Principal and CEO,12 illustrates his disparate
clientele as coming 'from dairy farmers in Usk to a series of
multi-national companies', which are located across the five local
authorities of South Wales. The college maintains, deliberately,
a site in each local authority. Lacey's influence is exerted at a
range of political and civic fora, at Welsh Government level, in
the Cardiff capital region, and through the five local authorities.
The geographical footprint of Coleg Gwent is different to that of
colleges such as Belfast Metropolitan College, but the scale and
the impact on the regional economy is similar.
This impact has grown in recent years as the college has become
increasingly successful in managing the gap between aspiration
and reality. From a narrow approach to regeneration, centred
on a nostalgia for the past, epitomised with short-sighted
developments such as a spend on a new shopping mall or
bridge, the city of Newport has now developed a new strategic
direction influenced by Lacey. Together, they are learning the
art of 'listening', analysing local employment trends rather than
imposing aspirational, but unrealistic, development. Civic leaders
are building on projects and skill sets that have traction to role
12 Interview, 12 February 2019