Its goal is to promote social care and career opportunities in the field.

Students are guaranteed a social care job at the end of the academic year with Dundee City Council or other local care providers.

The course starts this week and ends in June next year, with training consisting of two 12-week teaching sessions in the college and one 12-week work placement.

Social work convener Councillor Helen Wright met the new recruits at the college today to wish them well.

“The project is the outcome of good partnership work involving local care employers, the social work department and Dundee College,” she said.

“Assistance from JobCentre Plus and Scottish Enterprise Tayside, as well as other council departments, has also been important to the development of this initiative.

“I wish the first intake of the new academy all the very best with their studies and look forward to meeting them again when they take up a post with the council or other social care providers in June”.