City of Bath College students have discovered the wide range of careers on offer at one of the city’s largest developments.
Level 2 Electrical Installation students gained first-hand experience of what it is like to work with Miller Construction and its sub-contractors.
The 17 students were invited to visit the new £27m halls of residence development at Bath Spa University’s Newton Park Campus.
The 561 en-suite bedrooms include ready-made bathroom pods which have been transported to the site and lifted into position by a crane.
They were treated to tour of one of the blocks, which includes rooms for ten students plus a shared living/kitchen area, as well as the university’s new recycling plant, with a new state-of-the-art bio-mass boiler and two gas boilers.
The students also got the chance to find about work experience and apprenticeship opportunities from Miller’s Project Director Adrian Smith, Brett James, Senior Project Manager at Briggs & Forrester, and Neil Way, managing director of Jeff Way Electrical Services.
Student Leon Horton, 16, said: “It was a really interesting visit. I’ve never been to a building site before so it was great to see all the different things that go on.
“Now that I’ve seen everything, it makes me want to go into the business even more. We’ve also picked up some great tips about applying for apprenticeships.”
Lecturer Gerald Craig said the site visit had helped to increase the employability skills of students and strengthen the College’s industry links.
He said: “This site visit gave the students a real insight into how things are in the industry.
“They now realise there are lots of jobs out there, it’s just about getting the experience to get your foot through the door.”
There are 110 labourers at the Miller Construction site and they are just over half way through the work – week 34 of a 64 week project. The development is scheduled to be completed by September ready for students to move in.
Adrian told students that the development, which also includes a netball court, walled garden and new infrastructure, had to take into account listed buildings and endangered species such as badgers and newts.
He said: “We have to be very mindful that it’s a live site with lots going on; there are students and staff all around us.
“We have put a lot of time and effort into the logistics of getting the workers and materials to the site each day.
“There’s still a lot to do but everything’s going smoothly and we’re currently on programme.”
Jeff told students that they had installed 500km of cable at the site, saying the “opportunities were endless” for electrical contractors.
He also encouraged students to “get the experience early” saying that his company had over 100 applications for its three apprentice positions a year.
