An MP has called for more people to join the construction industry as part of a week long campaign aimed at inspiring more people to join the trade.

Nottingham East MP, Chris Leslie, paid a visit to the Nottingham Biosciences Centre as part of the Open Doors 2016 scheme, which is a joint initiative between Build UK and the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

During his visit to the brand new specialist science facility, Mr Leslie said that the site is one example of how rewarding and successful a construction career can be.

He added that having experienced the Open Doors 2016 project, he would encourage anyone to think about a career in the construction trade.

The scheme is running from Monday June 13 to Saturday June 18 and provides an exclusive, behind the scenes visit to some of the country’s top visiting sites for prospective civil engineers, architects and bricklayers.

Throughout the week, the project will attract thousands of visitors and covers around 130 building sites across England, Wales and Scotland.

The industry is in urgent need of more workers, with CITB forecasting the creation of more than 230,000 new jobs in the construction sector over the course of the next five years.

Chief Executive of Build UK, Suzannah Nicol, said that a visit to a local construction site spurred her on to join the construction industry and she hopes that the Open Doors 2016 scheme will encourage more young people to think about a construction industry career.

She added that there is an ‘infectious buzz’ on construction sites and the Open Doors scheme allows young potential construction workers to experience what life is like on site and the chance to find out what the industry is all about.

CITB Partnerships Manager, Lorraine Gregory, said that the project provides a great way of inspiring young people to work in the industry and said that now is the ideal time for people to join the sector given the upcoming influx of new jobs.