Members of the A6 Manchester Airport Relief Road team have visited Haveley Hey Primary School to inspire students and get them thinking about their future jobs and careers.
Taking part in the school’s ‘Our Futures’ event, the team spent time with pupils teaching them about engineering and construction through fun and challenging activities.
As bridges and new structures feature heavily within the relief road scheme, the team challenged pupils to think more about the shapes and structures, asking them to build the strongest bridge they could out of paper. All of the children really enjoyed the activity and learnt more about how certain shapes are key to building successful bridges.
Some of the A6 Manchester Airport Relief Road apprentices took part in the visit, themselves having been inspired to pursue a career in construction and engineering. Liam Redwood one of the apprentices who helped out on the day said: “My experience within the construction industry has inspired me and made me want to give something back to encourage the next generation to follow the same footsteps. Hopefully we achieved this during our visit to Haveley Hey Primary School.”
The visit was part of the Carillion Morgan Sindall joint venture’s school engagement programme that sees the team give lessons and assemblies at schools in and around the relief road route. Through the visits, the team inspires pupils about careers in engineering and construction, share their experience and expertise and provides information about staying safe around all building sites and the relief road development.
Neil Rogers, Carillion Morgan Sindall JV Project Director, said: “This is the third year we have worked with Haveley Hey. We are always keen to get involved with local schools and tell young people, especially girls, about the opportunities available to them through careers in construction and engineering. The earlier we can do this the better, so events of this type are crucial in letting children know about the career paths that are open to them.”
Carolyne Evans, Extending Learning Coordinator at Haveley Hey Primary School, said: “Our Futures week helps inspire our pupils about jobs and careers that are available to them in the future. We work with local companies who come to school and talk to our children about their jobs; what they do on a day to day basis; qualifications and what qualities their employers look for. They then complete a practical activity with the children. The A6 Manchester Airport Relief Road team has been a keen supporter over the past few years and this year challenged our Year 2 and 3 children to build bridges using paper. The children really enjoyed the activity and were able to talk about the structure and how triangles were the strongest shape!”
The A6 Manchester Airport Relief Road is a 10km dual carriageway being constructed to improve access across south east Manchester and east Cheshire. The £290m road is a joint venture between Stockport Council, Manchester City Council and Cheshire East Council with the contractor being a joint venture between Carillion and Morgan Sindall. The project remains on schedule to open in autumn 2017.
