Star Rustie Lee helps save Loppington College

Celebrity chef Rustie Lee has stepped in to save a closure-threatened specialist Shropshire college for disabled adults in a move set to protect about 60 jobs, union officials claimed today.

The 1980s TV star has spearheaded a deal to save Loppington College, in Loppington, near Wem, in partnership with new operator Healthcare Reit.

Officials from the GMB Union, which represents more than half of about 60 staff at the site, today confirmed the facility had been transferred to new operators – protecting local jobs at least until the new year.

Mark Bergman, GMB organiser for sites run by former college operator Southern Cross in Shropshire and Staffordshire, said staff now faced an anxious wait to find out if their jobs were safe for the long-term.

He said the new bosses were now waiting to hear whether Government funding, which was pulled just before the start of term sparking the crisis, would be restored enabling the college to continue.

Mr Bergman said: "It's all happened very quickly and the new operators have just taken over.

"The position is now that they have to wait to see if the Government's Young People's Learning Agency funding that was lost gets reinstated. It's all up in the air.

"For now everybody's job is safe until Christmas and the long-term picture depends on what happens.

"Rustie Lee has come from nowhere and the staff are pleased she has got the green light to take over from the authorities. The biggest thing is that people still have their jobs, which is important as the Wem area is not well-known for having lots of jobs available."

A spokesman for Southern Cross confirmed the company was no longer running the site having struck a deal with Healthcare Reit.

The site, which is a further education college and residential care home for disabled adults, has been under threat after the YPLA axed its funding two weeks before the new term because of spending cuts.

In August it emerged both the college, which caters for 14 adults with learning difficulties, and the adjoining residential centre, were under threat of closure.

By Tom Johannsen