Construction work is due to begin at the former air base in St Athan late next year after the scheme was approved by councillors in the Vale of Glamorgan at a special planning meeting on Thursday.

But the final say on the go-ahead rests with the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The proposed Defence Technical College (DTC) will provide specialist non-combat training for all three services on a 1,000-acre site, with up to 3,000 students present at a time.

The college will provide specialist engineering, communications and information systems training to all the UK's armed forces, bringing them together in one location on new premises.

The Metrix consortium, led by the former Government-owned defence research agency Qinetiq, was named preferred bidder for the contract by the Ministry of Defence in 2007.