Member Article

Talent of the Future event at Wirral waters

Representatives of around 85 Wirral-based building contractors attended a special event to showcase the capabilities and professionalism of budding builders studying at Wirral Metropolitan College’s Wirral Waters Campus in Birkenhead.

Organised by the Wirral Chamber Construction Forum, The Talent of the Future event (19.01.17) is a key element enabling the Forum to deliver on its objective of ensuring that local companies and individuals benefit from construction activities in Wirral.

The visitors were given demonstrations from students, who are seeking apprenticeship positions with local firms, on a wide range of construction trade skills. These demonstrations enabled the students to speak to contractors providing them with a clear understanding of their requirements and opportunities available to those just entering the sector.

The local contractors met with supply chain managers from both the developer behind Wirral Waters, Peel Land & Property, and main contractor Morgan Sindall which built the Wirral Met building. They also had the option of signing up to receive updates on opportunities and to receive support from both the Wirral Chamber of Commerce and the Construction Forum.

Also exhibiting were the Construction Industry Training Board which advises on funding and recruitment for apprentices and apprentice supplier, Calico.

Barry Roberts, chair of the Construction Forum said: “The event was a tremendous success. We had representatives of almost 100 local contractors who were very keen to find out about both the quality of the training the students’ receive and the opportunities for securing work on new developments.”

One of the contractors who attended the event was Kenny Boyd, managing director of Birkenhead-based Resin Coating Specialists. Kenny said: “It was a superb event for us as we rarely, if ever, have main contractors reaching out to us and opening the doors to the high-profile projects they work on.

“The college is a fantastic asset and the students there are a great resource for companies like mine. The more we grow by gaining new contacts, the greater the need for more employees. The whole event was set up to energise this virtuous circle. “

Michael Norton, Acting Principal of Wirral Met College, said: “We were delighted to welcome so many construction companies to our Wirral Waters Campus. I am proud of our students who were able to display their skills and talents to potential employers. Wirral Met College is developing the pipeline of skills to meet the opportunities provided by Wirral Waters and we are keen to develop close links with our local contractors, so that we can support them over the coming years in this major regeneration project.”

Richard Mawdsley, Director of Development of Wirral Waters added: “The Wirral Construction Forum is a great way to join the dots between Wirral building projects, the local supply chain and the talent emerging from the Wirral Waters Construction College.”

Kevin Adderley, Group MD Egerton House commented: “Construction and its related sub-sectors are a key focus for many of our members. We launched this forum to assist local organisations to create opportunities and do more business. We were delighted this evening to bring two new tender opportunities to the attention of members and hope that these are the first of many that will bring benefit to our construction businesses . We also know that the ability to recruit a skilled workforce is a crucial aspect in remaining competitive, so I’m thrilled that we could run this Forum event with Wirral Met College; this is exactly why we launched the forum.”

Wirral Construction Forum was established in 2016. Administered by the Wirral Chamber of Commerce, its founding members include Peel Land & Property and main contractor Morgan Sindall.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by James Burch .