Six colleges - City of Sunderland, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Tynemouth - have joined forces as the Tyne & Wear Further Education Consortium to boost the region's education and to attract funding.
The group aims to ensure that the Northeast is represented as powerfully as possible on educational issues and that students are given the best possible resources and opportunities with employers.
The consortium, which will also be known as G6, has more than 100,000 students and a combined education budget of more than £112 million.