Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen says £2m in extra funding is being given this academic year to colleges and training providers providing adult education in the region.
Mr Houchen said it was critical that people had the skills needed to take advantage of new jobs being created in the Tees Valley.
He said: “This extra funding that I am providing will mean our colleges and training providers can deliver even more high-quality education and training so that local people from across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool can develop the skills they need to forge a fulfilling career in the region.”
A spokesman for Mr Houchen’s Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) said it was to support an increase in what colleges and training providers were able to deliver and was from unallocated funds.
Adult education became the responsibility of TVCA in 2019 under devolved powers and it has a budget of approximately £30m a year.
The spokesman said individual funding awards for the 2021/22 academic year had yet to be agreed.
Last month the Local Democracy Reporting Service revealed that…
