15 January 2012 Last updated at 07:50 ET

Durham Business School role for Ushaw College

Ushaw College will be home to the business school for about two years

A Roman Catholic college in County Durham is to have a new role as a business school.

As home to St Cuthbert's Seminary, Ushaw College trained entrants for the priesthood for more than 200 years.

Its closure in June 2011 led to fears about the future of the historic building, just outside Durham City.

Durham Business School will be based there temporarily during the multi million-pound development of its site on Mill Hill Lane.

The £16.6m rebuilding and expansion work is expected to take about two years.

Ushaw College can trace its roots back to Douai College, which was founded in 1568 in the Spanish Netherlands, now northern France.