Hampshire school children swapped the classroom for hardhats and visited one of Leadbitter’s major building sites as part of a campaign aimed at attracting young people into the profession. In June, youngsters from schools across the area including St Denys, Cherbourg and Quiley School for Engineering visited Eastleigh College to see for themselves the construction industry at work. The visit allowed the students to see the £6.5 million programme of works that incorporates the new build and refurbishment which Leadbitter are undertaking.

The five school visits were arranged through Hampshire Education Partnership’s ‘Constructing Our Future’ Programme with the aim of introducing young people to careers in project management , architecture and quantity surveying as well as construction skills. The three part programme saw Leadbitter providing an insight into the industry, including details of the Eastleigh College development. This was followed by a site tour conducted by a member of our team. Pupils then returned to the main college building to take part in practical building exercises.

The school visits directly resulted in an invitation from Education Business Partnership Ltd for Leadbitter to take part in the ‘Meet the Construction Professionals’ initiative run in conjunction with Portsmouth & South East Hampshire Education Business Partnership Ltd. Dave Cook, Regional Director and Carl Blakeley, Bid Manager for our Southern Construction Division, took part in this initiative which consisted of an hour of ‘speed networking’, during which time they were grilled by students from three Hampshire schools on the best way to forge a successful career in construction. Dave and Carl were extremely impressed by the energy and enthusiasm the students displayed, adding they were greatly encouraged by the depth of young talent ready to be recruited into the industry.