The Garenne Construction Group are delighted to have been shortlisted for a British Construction Industry Award in the Community Engagement Initiative of the Year Category. This is for the great work completed on a long-term strategy designed to inspire young people into the construction industry by offering great career choices whilst striving to change the perception of construction.
CEO, Marc Burton has been spearheading the initiative which aims to reduce skills gaps and future proof the talent pipeline to embed a pathway into the industry. With investment into construction being one of the main ways in which the Government of Jersey hopes to address fiscal stimulus post Covid 19, it is even more relevant to ensure we can inspire young people and education providers to see that the industry offers exciting careers prospects.
Marc explains that the core focus is to make a meaningful difference to Jersey, “We have been fortunate to have the opportunity to develop a working partnership with the Government, Schools and industry leaders and being shortlisted for the award is testament to all the hard work that everyone has put in. Working along Skills Jersey to introduce Design Engineer Construct! (DEC!) and as part of the Adopt a School programme which is fundamental to the success of DEC!, I have had the opportunity to spend time with students and it has been a personal highlight to see our students develop and grow. We are so proud that the Programme has been offered out to other schools and the teachers have supported this new way of learning.
However, our engagement doesn’t stop with DEC! and we continue to work on offering the opportunity to promote and develop skilled workers within the Industry. We have a great Partnership with Highlands College and we continue to support their vocational and degree courses.”
The British Construction Industry Awards are the most prestigious awards in the build environment so for a project in Jersey to be shortlisted is a huge accolade. We will have to wait until October to find out whether we are successful in winning the category, and being up against four heavyweights in UK construction, Costain, Skanska, Vinci Construction and VolkerStevin is a testament to how Garenne is leading the way in community engagement.