Next generation scientists and engineers are set to benefit from the development of a £1.5 million purpose-built science centre which is currently being constructed.

A new two-story building will be added to existing facilities, and will house a number of new hi-tech labs and teaching spaces. The design will feature a number of sustainable measures and local materials, such as Welsh stone and local timber cladding.

The centre will be built off-site by construction specialists, Yorkon, minimising the disruption to teaching, and guaranteeing the completion of the project on time and on budget. Final on-site construction and fit-out will be completed by this August, in time for the 2008/09 academic year.

Head, Emma Taylor said: “I am thrilled to be bucking national trends by investing in a new science facility of this quality at a time when young scientists are becoming something of an endangered species. The sustainable design of the building is important not only environmentally but educationally too, as pupils will be able to see features such as re-use of water and solar heating at first hand. Yorkon have been wonderfully innovative partners in the process and we are also grateful for guidance from the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.”

This investment is the latest in a series of developments since receiving a £4 million bequest from a former pupil. The windfall was due to the generosity of Old Breconian and pharmacist, David Hubert Jones, from Glanaman in Carmarthenshire, who wished the money to be spent fostering a future generation of scientists.

Steve Maggs, Director of the Christ College Foundation said: “The Hubert Jones Legacy is not only providing a significant proportion of the capital needed to develop the new science centre. It has boosted our endowment and is enabling Christ College to provide even more science scholarships and bursaries making our facilities more accessible and affordable for families of able and talented pupils who want to study in our superb environment. This is a clear demonstration that Christ College is playing a full part in producing outstanding young scientists, teaching them in 21st Century facilities, as well as demonstrating its continued commitment to its charitable aims and objects."