Kanes Hill Primary School pupils enjoy their visit to the City Depot premises of Balfour Beatty as part of an enterprise event to give them an insight into the construction industry.
Youngsters from one Southampton primary school were given an insight into the world of work when they spent the day with a top construction firm.
The Year 5 and 6 pupils from Kanes Hill Primary, part of the Hinkler Academies Trust, were given a tour of Balfour Beatty’s city depot.
And that wasn’t all.
As part of the event, organised by Enabling Enterprise, the children got to compete in a series of construction challenges, including designing a new tower block.
Headteacher, Kirsten Buist, said: “We are very grateful to Enabling Enterprise for arranging this fantastic experience for our pupils.
“There is so much more to education than academia – giving young people the skills needed to equip them in the real world of work are just as essential.
“This was a wonderful opportunity not only for our children to see how a real business such as Balfour Beatty operates but to also get a taste for the work itself.”
Kanes Hill Primary School pupils enjoy their visit to the City Depot premises of Balfour Beatty as part of an enterprise event to give them an insight into the construction industry.
Enabling Enterprise experiences are designed to show young students key work place skills in action, learn about jobs in the STEM industry and meet local employees.
For their experience, the 14 youngsters from Kanes Hill started their day with an introduction to Balfour Beatty from Contract Director, Brian Hammersley.
This was followed by the students interviewing the employees about their jobs and then taking part in a site tour.
Balfour’s employees impressed on the children the importance of teamwork and staying positive in the work place.
Their experience culminated with a construction challenge.
Divided into teams, the Kanes Hill pupils were tasked with designing a tower block, while factoring in how they would meet the needs of the local community and constraints of the site.
The would-be developers then had to pitch their ideas and prototypes to a team of judges.
Maryam Ben Rabha, South East Regional Manager at Enabling Enterprise, said:
“The children blew me away with how well they have come together in their teams and set about their tasks with great maturity.
“They have applied their skills brilliantly on this mini project and have learnt so much about the world of construction and infrastructure.”
Note to editors:
Enabling Enterprise was founded by teachers in 2009, and now works with more than 85,000 students nationally. A not-for-profit social enterprise, its vision is to ensure that, one day; every student will leave school with the skills, experiences and aspirations to succeed.
To achieve its mission Enabling Enterprise works in partnership with more than 120 employers across a wide range of sectors and 270 schools to make enterprise a core part of the school curriculum.
For more information contact Rachel Read, account director at Deep South Media, on 01202 534487.
