Fire service’s delayed £50m training college officially opens

A new £50 million training college for the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) has been officially opened in Co Tyrone.

The opening of the new facility outside Cookstown on Wednesday was attended by First Minister Michelle O’Neill, deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly and Health Minister Mike Nesbitt.

The project has faced significant delays and was originally planned to be a larger training college that catered for police and prison service also.

The plans were later redrawn to become a purpose-built facility for the fire service.

The centre which was completed at the end of 2024, offers training environments and simulation spaces that reflect real-life emergency scenarios.

Phase two of the facility includes a flood water rescue facility, a training warehouse, a call out village, a barn and slurry pit, a motorway infrastructure and an academic building.

Phase one of the college, which was completed in 2019, included a tactical firefighting facility and training support building.

During their visit to the new centre, the minister witnessed a number of training demonstrations, including firefighters dealing with a car fire and a multi vehicle crash on a specially-built replica of a stretch of motorway.

NIFRS chief fire and rescue officer Aidan Jennings said: “Today marks a historic milestone for our service.

“The college is revolutionising how we train and develop our people to meet the evolving needs of a modern day fire and rescue service and build on the collaborative working with other emergency responders and statutory agencies.

“This is key to successful emergency incident intervention and resolution.

“The college fosters a culture of lifelong learning and marks the beginning of a new journey that will shape how we prepare, develop and support our people and our community.”

He added: “On behalf of NIFRS I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Northern Ireland Executive, Department of Health, Department of Finance, our board, and all those who provided financial and strategic support to bring this vision to life.

“I would like to express thanks to those involved in the project from its very inception, who have worked tirelessly to turn that vision into a reality.

“Thank you for your unwavering dedication, passion and commitment to helping make Northern Ireland a safer place.”

Ms O’Neill described the facility as a “game changer” as she visited on Wednesday.

“This is very much a flagship project of the Executive for many, many years, and to see it officially opened today was so good to see,” she said.

“It’s an investment in public services, it’s an investment west of the (river) Bann, it’s an investment in community safety and it really is a game changer in terms of the development here on this wider site, where there is so much more scope for potential.

“But today is about the Fire and Rescue Service, and we’re so grateful for all those people who actually put themselves out there to make sure we are safe at times of crisis.”

Ms Little-Pengelly added: “A really significant day. This represents just over £50 million of Executive-supported funding to create this world class facility for fire and rescue services.

“There is no doubt that this is a facility that will save lives in the future because it offers that world class training to those trainees coming through.

“It was a long time coming, so really good to get to this day and to see these fantastic facilities formally opened.”

Mr Nesbitt said: “This is a landmark investment not just in the future of our fire and rescue service, but in the safety and wellbeing of every community across Northern Ireland.

“It equips our firefighters with world-class training facilities that will ensure they are trained and ready to face the most complex challenges of modern emergency response.

“I commend all those involved in delivering this visionary project and reaffirm the Department of Health’s commitment to supporting initiatives that protect and save lives.”

The college is a Northern Ireland Executive Flagship Programme for Government project.