A NEW £16m college is preparing to welcome 7,000 students after the Christmas holidays.

Terrace Hill, developer of the Stockton Riverside College, at Teesside Business Park, has handed the keys for the building to college governors.

College principal Margaret Armstrong confirmed yesterday that it will be ready to receive students on the first day of term, January 6.

It will replace the existing Stockton and Billingham College, which has operated on a split site since the 1950s.

The college, being built as part of the Teesside Business Park development, has been funded by the college and the European Community.

Mrs Armstrong said: "We will have 7,000 students using this building by the beginning of next year and that is a tremendous achievement.

"It is more than 30 years since a new college has been built in the region and we are proud to be leading this exciting development.

"We started the autumn term a week early so we could finish now and be ready for January 6.

"In the meantime, we have been making sure the students know exactly where they are going, and what their travel arrangements are."

With about 2,000 students coming from Billingham, there has been criticism from some that the move would be bad for the town.

Mrs Armstrong refuted the claims, saying: "People who once criticised the move are now friends of the college.

"We are looking to start a major development in Billingham. We are exploring ways to make a bigger and better provision for the town."

As well as 47 seminar rooms, studio theatre, arts department and refectory, the building will also house a computer hall with 300 machines.

Project manager Ed Bell, from Terrace Hill, said: "We wanted the building to be both inspirational and flexible in its design so the needs of the constantly changing curriculum could be accommodated."