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Updates: Colleges & Business Units | Commercial Outlets and Nurseries
Advice for: Students, Parents and Carers | College Applicants | Apprentices
Jenner, who are helping you to achieve your full potential by constructing our Phase 2 development (bringing lots of new facilities) stopped by college last term to give a talk to our students. Jenner are an award winning construction company who were founded in 1875 in Folkestone, where they remain to this day. Having delivered on a variety of exceptional projects across Kent and Sussex, as well as having extensive knowledge of the area, they were very proud to be chosen as our main contractor for the construction of our expansion. Joining us in college from Jenner were Ella Brocklebank, the Head of Communications and Business Development, Ashley Smith, Phase 2's Assistant Site Manager, and Andy Saheb, the Site Manager. Students from our Engineering, Electrical and Plumbing pathways were in attendance to their talk, and we gained some insight into Jenner as a company, the industry/roles they could do in the future, and Phase 2 itself.
Ella started off the talk with her journey through to where she is now, helping students to realise that hard work goes a long way in the construction industry, and that every role is different. No matter their skillset or end goal, Construction is a great industry for them. Ella helped to break down common construction myths to our students, such as that its a male dominated industry and a macho industry. It was explained that it isn't the case as people of any gender can go into any role in the industry, and that there has been significant investment in mental health, making sure that everyone feels looked after. 12% of the current Construction workforce are women, and this percentage continues to rise - which is helping to break down social barriers.
There were also some points raised by Jenner about how they focus strongly on the topics of sustainability and health and safety. Students also got a chance to look at the progress of Phase 2, and some recent projects Jenner have completed. These include beach apartments at Folkestone, the Folkestone Skatepark with the world's first suspended skate bowls, and the Curious Brewery in Ashford. By showing such a diverse range of their projects, from housing to educational, it proves that every project in the industry is very different, and that no day is the same!
Ashley and Andy spoke to the students in-depth about what their roles were and how they got to where they are today. Ashley even studied with us at Ashford College a few years ago! They also spoke about some key parts of their roles, such as Health and Safety focuses as well as meeting project deadlines. Students got an insight into the Phase 2 project, as well as construction components and how the project is going so far. As you can see by the photos below, there has been some significant progress over the past few months. It's hard to believe that last summer it was just a gravel pit, and that soon Phase 2 will be full of classrooms, labs, workshops and an "Engineering Hub" for our new and current students!
A big thank you to Jenner for all their hard work on Phase 2, and for them taking time out of their busy schedule to really help our students learn!
