The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has achieved a £4m investment milestone with the construction of a new submarine training school at its naval base HMNB Clyde, Scotland.
HM Treasury has approved the Initial Gate Business Case for the new submarine school, which will serve as a single UK hub for the navy’s submarine service.
Work on the project is scheduled to commence later this year when the final design for the submarine training school development has been approved, which is expected in the near future
The new school will offer both academic and technical training for all UK naval personnel enrolling with the submarine service from 2022.
All of the navy’s 11 submarines will be based at HMNB Clyde from 2020, thereby increasing the number of employees at the base from 6,800 to 8,200.
The submarine training school will support the navy’s Astute-class submarines, as well as offer training for the new Dreadnought nuclear deterrent boats.
Submarine Service head rear admiral John Weale said: “Our new single integrated operating base will make significant improvements to the work-life balance of our 5,000 submariners.
“By putting our boats and training in one place, our submariners can put down roots in Scotland knowing that they are no longer required to commute from one end of the country to another.”
The development is part of a wider £1.3bn investment intended to transform the Clyde into Britain’s main submarine hub, which will celebrate another key milestone upon the arrival of the last four Astute-class submarines at the base.
The submarines are expected to be commissioned into the navy between 2018 and 2024, and will eventually replace the current Trafalgar-class vessels.
The final two Trafalgar-class submarines, Talent and Triumph, will move from Devonport, Plymouth, to the Clyde in 2019 and 2020 respectively, while the Submarine Escape Rescue Abandonment and Survivability Training capability is planned to be relocated from Hampshire to the re-developed base by 2019.
Nuclear facilities are then expected to be replaced or refurbished by the Faslane Nuclear Infrastructure Continuous Availability Programme by 2024, and the four Dreadnought nuclear deterrent submarines will begin arriving at Faslane from the early 2030s, replacing the Vanguard-class boats.
