Manchester People

The first batch of new apprentices employed through Manchester City Council's Town Hall Complex transformation programme have been recruited.
Around 400 people are expected to work on the project, with one in five jobs going to apprentices honing their skills in areas from general construction to ultra-specialist restoration work.

The Town Hall Complex Transformation programme will see the town hall extension and Central Library extensively refurbished by 2014 to deliver state-of-the-art services and preserve both grade II*-listed gems for future generations.It also involves a design competition to ensure St Peter's Square provides a world-class setting for both historic buildings.

An agreement to be signed on Wednesday 13 July by the Council, lead construction contractor Laing O'Rourke and other contractors involved in the project will confirm this commitment to apprenticeships, skills development and learning. Under the agreement 66 new apprenticeships will be created and a further 19 existing apprenticeships supported.

Deputy Council leader Sue Murphy said:

"This is a proud day. It has always been important to the Council to ensure this ambitious project created and protected local jobs and it's hugely satisfying to know that it will enable these apprentices to learn new skills on the job.

"These apprenticeships aren't just for the life of this project - the people in them are being taken on permanently. So as well as preserving these heritage buildings for the future and ensuring they can deliver improved services in the years ahead, we are also helping give these people a promising future.

Joe Noone, 17, from Chorlton, is about to start work as an apprentice electrician for NG Bailey. He said:

"It's the opportunity of a lifetime to do what I want to do and this is such an interesting project to work on."

Joinery apprentice Ben Greenwood, 19, from Woodhouse Park in Wythenshawe, completed a joinery course at Manchester College's Brownlea campus in Wythenshawe which ultimately led to his new role with Gariff Construction and Joinery.

"I can't wait to get started," he said. "I wanted to work in joinery and I'd almost given up on it because I'd been trying so hard to find something, then I got a call out of the blue saying there were apprenticeships available. It was a great phone call to receive."

Former Manchester Creative and Media Academy Boys pupil Josh Shaw, aged 16, from Blackley, has already started work as an apprentice quantity surveyor with the Laing O'Rourke team and is relishing the experience. He said:

"I feel quite lucky to have found this to be honest. It's been a steep learning curve so far but I'm learning new things every day."

More apprentices will be recruited in the months ahead and anyone interested in becoming an apprentice should keep tabs on our Town Hall Complex Transformation pages - this is also the place to find out more details about the project.

Linda Stokes, employer services manager for the National Apprenticeship Service, said:

"This programme is a really good example of a public sector insisting that apprenticeships are part of the procurement for a major project. The apprentices will gain skills and portable qualifications while working on these fine buildings."