Residents are invited to attend a public consultation for a project, which aims to improve and contribute to training and skills development for Newlyn’s fishers, and all who work at sea or in the wider maritime industry.  

Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners is staging the public consultation event for a new Marine Skills & Resource Centre in Newlyn in The Centre, Chywoone Hill, Newlyn on Thursday, August 3 between 4pm and 7pm. 

The planned Marine Skills & Resource Centre also aims to replace and improve the current training facilities scattered around Newlyn by consolidating them in a single state-of-the-art building within Newlyn Harbour’s curtilage. 

The event will showcase initial designs by Poynton Bradbury Wynter Cole (PBWC) Architects, who have been appointed by Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners to work on the project. 

PBWC is a Cornwall-based and multi-award-winning firm that specialises in environmentally-responsive design. 

Rob Wing, the chair of Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners, said: “Newlyn Harbour has been at the heart of Newlyn and Cornish fishing for centuries. 

 “As skills and technologies have developed and changed, so has Newlyn Harbour and the community we are a part of. Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners are honoured to continue this journey and the planned Marine Skills & Resource Centre will not only provide access to modern training facilities and spaces for those working within the fishing and marine sectors, both now and in the future, but also enable them to continue to develop and change, keeping Newlyn at the heart of Cornish fishing and the wider maritime industry.” 

The Newlyn Marine Skills & Resource Centre is among the seven projects that have been selected to receive funding from the UK Government’s Town Deal Fund and is supported by Cornwall Council as part of the Penzance Town Deal programme. 

Martin Tucker, the chair of the Penzance Town Deal Board, said: “The new Marine Skills & Resource Centre project is a fantastic opportunity to revitalise the local marine industry and reaffirm Newlyn’s reputation as a centre of excellence. The proposed building will provide high quality training, foster collaboration and innovation, and help to create and sustain jobs in the fishing and marine sectors that have faced challenges in recent years.” 

Thalia Marrington, Cornwall Councillor for Newlyn said: “Having a centre of excellence for learning and development right here; being able to recruit, train and retain a workforce locally will be of huge benefit to the local community. A resilient and agile workforce will be crucial in creating a strong and sustainable future for the fishing industry. Opportunities abound within the wider marine sector too and this new building will be the focal point to drive and lead innovation. It is great to see Newlyn firmly facing forwards.”