It is almost time to bid farewell to Dunstable College and say hello to Central Bedfordshire College, the new name for the education body as it moves into a bright future.

Dunstable College is undergoing the name change in the New Year, and will celebrate with a launch event on January 14.

The idea is to give a better picture of the area in which the college has bases, and reflect the college's growing presence within the region.

As part of the switchover, there will be new names for the college's three main bases, including the Kingsway building.

They will be known as Dunstable Campus, Houghton Regis Campus and Leighton Buzzard Campus.

When the decision was announced, principal Chris Vesey said: "It is a good time for us to launch the college under a new name.

"It feels as though the name Central Bedfordshire College embraces the future, although we have some precious memories of Dunstable College that are dear to my heart.

"We shall continue to develop the role of the college in the centre of Dunstable as a significant economic force.

"We have some ambitious plans for the future. I shall also be collating an archive of the history of Dunstable College, so would appreciate any contributions from members of the local community, to help me with that."

As part of the name change, the college website will change to www.centralbeds.ac.uk.

And the staff email addresses will end in
@centralbeds.ac.uk, rather than @dunstable.ac.uk.

But the Dunstable College and Central Bedfordshire College websites and email addresses will both be up and running for the time being, during the changeover.

A new logo has been created, with help from feedback received during consultation.

It was designed by a former college student Sam Cranwell, who has set up his own design agency, Provide Design.

Now the college has put together its new January 2010 part-time course guide.