A public consultation has been launched on the proposed merger of Amersham & Wycombe and Aylesbury colleges.

The milestone merger was being discussed in July this year as education bosses believed Amersham and Wycombe College’s long-term future could be secured by the move, which would create one single college across Bucks.

The under-threat college, which was ranked inadequate by Ofsted earlier this year and forced to receive government help, announced it was starting to turn things around last month after a re-inspection monitoring visit.

Both colleges are now asking the public’s views and opinions in the consultation, which will run until Friday, January 6.

Karen Mitchell, principal and chief executive of Aylesbury College, said: “Together our shared vision is to create a combined college that will deliver consistently high quality teaching, with improving outcomes for students across all three campuses.

“By sharing our expertise and resources we can effectively power skills and education in Bucks.”

Both colleges have stressed that ongoing discussions will not have any impact on current or potential students applying to either college for September 2017.

They have also released a document that outlines the details about the proposed merger and say they are keen to hear from “key stakeholders” including students, parents, employers, partner organisations and community groups.

For more information, go to www.amersham.ac.uk/merger or contact either college to request a copy of the document.