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Hut-making project inspires local teenagers
17 December 2008
A group of local teenagers have got a taste for construction while improving their communication and team building skills in the 'Construct a Hut' project, run by Brighton & Hove City Council's Key Stage 4 Engagement Programme (KS4EP) and City College Brighton and Hove. The project aims to offer personalised vocational education opportunities to young people who are disengaged from school and ties in with the government priority to reduce the proportion of 16 to 18 year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs). The students attend two days a week for twelve weeks, as a part of their wider education. They have now created a hut from scratch with no kits or flat packs involved. It is a permanent construction with roof trusses, flooring, a window and a loft. The project was run for the first time this term and Hugh Burnett, The High Sheriff of East Sussex, recently visited the students at an event to mark the hut's completion. Mr. Burnett says:
'Those involved in delivering this project are tackling an enormous issue which desperately needs to be addressed and they are doing this with patience, tolerance and a level of understanding which is remarkable.'
'Construct a Hut' at City College
Student Jordan Slowe says:
'I enjoyed it because it's not doing the same thing all day - you're doing lots of different jobs like construction, painting and decorating and bricklaying. I like it more than school because it's more hands-on rather than just writing things down on paper and the tutors treat us like adults and not kids. Since doing this course, I think I'd like to get into fitting kitchens or doing loft conversions.'
Tutor Steve Wilkins says:
'It's all about engagement and the boys have enjoyed getting on with the practical work and proven to themselves that they can succeed at a finishing a project.'
Opportunities for further study with City College have opened up for some of these students and others will return to school with a renewed sense of pride and commitment and hopefully a willingness to keep learning.
For media enquiries, please call Brian Bell, Marketing Communications Officer, on 01273 667788 Ext. 488 or email bb1@ccb.ac.uk
About City College Brighton and Hove: Founded over 100 years ago, City College Brighton and Hove has become an international centre of excellence. Every year over 2,000 full-time and 10,000 part time students as well as many international and European students choose City College as their education provider. The College provides training to over 2,000 businesses and has a 'City Business Skills' department which focuses on employers' needs. Offering over 700 courses from basic level to pre-University level, City College is working with its partners to develop the workforce of the future.
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