The future of the Britannia Royal Naval College as a top class training ground for the country's naval officers is safe – at least for the foreseeable future.

The Ministry of Defence has ditched moves which could have seen the 118 year-old college closed or merged with the huge Royal Navy ratings training base at HMS Raleigh in Plymouth.

This week the naval college boss Cpt Jerry Kyd said the future of the college – with all its royal connections – is safe.

'The BRNC is a modern college that delivers officer training extremely well and has done so for 150 years. The naval board has decided to continue to deliver this at the BRNC for the foreseeable future,' he said.

There has been uncertainty over the future of the Dartmouth college for at least the last three years after the Government launched an appraisal of all naval training as part of the Ministry of Defence's Strategic Defence and Security Review.

There were rumours about a merger of the two naval training bases at Dartmouth and Plymouth which included the possibility of the closure of the naval college – which would have delivered a massive financial and cultural blow to Dartmouth.

There has not yet been a formal announcement that the defence review has concluded that the college's future is safe.

But Cpt Kyd announced the news as he unveiled a floral model of HMS Britannia in Dartmouth's Royal Avenue Gardens – a flower filled tribute to the 150 years that the Royal Navy has had links with Dartmouth.

It was 150 years ago this year that officer training began in the river with the arrival of the man-o-war sailing ship HMS Britannia.

The huge 138-acre shore based college overlooking the Dart was built in 1905 to replace the floating training base.

Since then thousands of the British Royal Navy officers passed out from the college – including the Duke of Edinburgh – who met his bride to be Princess Elizabeth there – their sons Prince Charles and Prince Andrew and grandson Prince William.

The Dartmouth Naval College currently trains some 400 young officer cadets a year for the Royal Navy but it also carrying out training programmes for the Army, RAF and other service personnel which would almost double that number.

It employs around 250 service, Ministry of Defence and civilian staff including serving officers, civilian lecturers and cleaners and cooks on top of that.

HMS Raleigh is currently geared up to train some 2,500 ratings each year – which is way up on 1,500 intake last year.

Cpt Kyd said the Royal Navy was looking at future 'new and exciting capabilities' including the introduction of the new class of aircraft carriers.

'The BRNC needs to produce the best trained and motivated personnel possible. That is what we are trying to do.'