December 2019
Story Homes has demonstrated its commitment to the future of construction through delivering site visits and career talks with students from Wigan and Leigh College at one of its Preston developments.
Wigan and Leigh college students got first-hand experience of working on a live construction site. Over a five-week period, more than 35 bricklaying students visited Story Homes’ Waterside development in Cottam, Preston, to see first-hand how construction of the 283 new homes is progressing.
Dave Rimmer, Head of Production at Story Homes, said: “It’s really important for the future generation of trades to be able to visit a site, see how a development progresses and actually speak to people working on a site to understand what it’s like working on a building site.
“We’re proud to partner with Wigan and Leigh College and be able to provide hands-on experience for over 35 students this year, aged between 16 and 20. We’ve been able to address the diversity of a career in construction, the growing demand within the house building sector and the career paths available. ”
Story Homes has 10 developments across the North West and South Cumbria and has several new developments in the pipeline across the region. This year the regional office will deliver around 300 homes and has several schemes in the planning stages, with the intention of increasing to 450 homes per year over the next three years.
Gordon Guthrie, Lecturer A from Wigan and Leigh college, said: “This was a great opportunity for our Level 1, 2 and 3 bricklaying students, many of whom had never been on a live construction site before, to get some hands-on experience and see what they’ve been learning in action.
“This is an impressive development with more than 100 houses already built and moved in to plus a number of homes under construction. It was great for the students to see a live development from the preparation and ground works through to a completed house. It was interesting to see how the development progresses and it was extremely valuable for our students to be able to speak to the site team and get their insight on entering the industry.
“It’s been great to have site manager Albert and his assistant Kyle to take the students around the site giving an insight on what it’s like working on a building site and future career paths. This will help our students to make informed judgements on their future careers, which will hopefully be long and prosperous.”
For further information about Story Homes, visit www.storyhomes.co.uk.
