Through its construction partner Laing O’Rourke, Everton is proud to be helping nurture local people undertaking various apprenticeship programmes. There are currently 66 apprentices working on or towards the build of the stadium, applying their skills in various fields.
Trade and technical apprentices work in areas such as formwork, steel fixing and carpentry, while colleagues on Laing O’Rourke’s Early Talent Professional Apprenticeship Programme are studying disciplines including but not limited to construction management, engineering and quantity surveying.
Monday 6 – Friday 12 February is the Department for Education’s National Apprenticeship Week, a campaign that gives organisations the chance to celebrate the achievements of apprentices and the positive impact they make to communities, businesses, and the wider economy.
The number of apprentices working on the site in north Liverpool, which is the one of the largest private developments in the UK at present, will only grow as more supply chain partners are introduced in the coming months.
In addition to the people employed by Laing O’Rourke, many of the contractors on site also work with apprentices. An example of this is Dylan, who as part of a three-year course with Summit Scaffolding started with smaller duties like oiling fittings and organising materials.
His schedule involves visiting a scaffolding training centre in addition to his on-site training at Everton Stadium, where he has been able to undertake tasks from simple edge protection to complex heavy duty design scaffolds.
Cameron, 22, explained why he chose to start a level two apprenticeship in formwork and how he is finding it. “I have been in an array of jobs from landscaping and construction to insurance and I always felt like I had more to give. What better way to do that than to apply the knowledge I already had to once in a lifetime opportunity to help build a football stadium almost on my doorstep. Working for Laing O’Rourke has been nothing short of a dream come true. Staff and contractors from top to bottom have made me feel so welcome and have helped me develop in many ways.”
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