TWO North-East further education colleges have come together to create the first confederation of its kind in the region.

The move - by Gateshead College and Middlesbrough College - will ensure tens of thousands of students benefit from the best possible access to further education (FE) expertise, job opportunities and links with employers.

It is hoped that this will also strengthen employer training across the North-East.

The link-up between the colleges is among only a handful of similar initiatives in the UK.

Both colleges will remain independent organisations in their own right with their own principal/chief executive and governing bodies, but will work far closer, sharing ideas and collaborating on initiatives to deliver higher standards of training and skills provision.

They will each continue to focus on their own local communities.

It is hoped that the confederation will provide wide ranging benefits including: improved standards of teaching, learning and assessment , more flexible responses to employers' needs, development and career opportunities for college staff, acceleration of innovative student-led enterprise activities, business growth and increased market share and an enhanced ability to influence regional and national policy.

Those behind the move believe the colleges' combined size, scale, vision and influence will make them more resilient to future challenges.

It is also thought that both colleges will benefit from a more regional perspective, enabling them to deliver what North-East businesses and the wider community need.

Mike Hopkins, currently principal/ chief executive of Middlesbrough College has become confederation group chief executive while Judith Doyle will continue to lead Gateshead College as principal/chief executive.