COLLEGE lecturers are claiming victory in their fight to save 89 threatened jobs.

The declaration comes as a dramatic college funding U-turn was revealed.

Cutbacks had meant around 62 lecturers and 27 support staff at Coleg Sir Gâr were facing redundancy, but after protests on the steps of the Senedd, news leaked of an Assembly rethink.

John Griffiths, the Assembly's deputy minister for skills, announced an additional £8.93 million for further education institutions and sixth form colleges in Wales.

Judith Williams, of the University and College Union (UCU), the union representing lecturers at the college, said: "The announcement of extra funding from the Assembly is great news for further education in West Wales."

She also revealed there was now a moratorium on job losses in place at Coleg Sir Gâr.

"We welcome news that the principal has agreed to our request to place a moratorium on the planned redundancies until we know more detail about how this funding will be allocated.

"Common sense should tell you that the middle of a recession is not the time to be making highly trained, qualified educators redundant — just when the Welsh economy needs them more than ever."

For more on this story, see this week's Carmarthen Journal.