Albany Science College, in Bolton Road, applied for the Lottery funding to create adult learning and training courses during out-of-hours.

Wendy Johnstone, who is spearheading the project, said she was 'delighted' at the grant and says the project aims to support people affected by the recession.

She said: "The courses will be open for anyone, young and old, and we want to launch really diverse courses from motor vehicle services straight through to things like volleyball.

"They will be short taster courses, which will hopefully lead to people going on to more advanced courses elsewhere.

"They will be really affordable too. The point is to get people involved and learning, which is really important especially these days."

The project is called 'Community Wize' and will cost users between £1 - £2 per class. People can take as many or as few as they choose.

The 16 taster classes will include DIY, healthy cooking, digital photography and auto mechanics.

Wendy, a teacher at Albany, is also the extended schools manager and runs IT courses for pensioners and works in child development.

She is also heavily involved in the acclaimed 'Girls Aloud' project to tackle unwanted teenage pregnancies by getting youngsters to care for 'virtual babies.'

Wendy added: "Schools are such a big part of the community but after hours they don't really give anything back.

"I believe people should have greater access to our facilities and this project aims to get people involved in a non-intimidating environment."

The project is due to be launched next year for three years.