CPA Bulletin

Driving along winding country lanes east of Kings Lynn, the first glimpse of the National Construction College (NCC) at Bircham Newton comes as a shock. Situated over 150 acres of verdant Norfolk countryside, the assorted hangars, towers and multi- storey cranes seem rather out of place. The campus is a hive of activity: learners and educators in high-viz jackets and helmets lay bricks and drive trucks or practise their plantwork skills on the 16 high-tech simulators; off-duty apprentices play tennis and squash, jog on specially-marked tracks, or swim in the 25m heated pool. Located on the site of a former RAF base, NCC has been a thriving construction college at Bircham since 1964. Now, the site and its facilities are being made available to suitable investors on the proviso that NCC remains a construction college; current operator the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) will continue to run things until the right buyer is found. CITB has a large staff presence at Bircham, and there are also expert instructors, experienced in all aspects of the construction industry, who guide apprentices and learners in a wide variety of skills. These include crane operating, scaffolding, bricklaying, and dozens of other courses which are recognised by industry. Plant training is a speciality at Bircham, with more than 24 courses on offer including Forward Tipping Dumpers, Crawler crane, Tower Crane and even Vehicle Marshalling. All NCC instructors at Bircham have in-depth experience in the construction trade, and it is perhaps this, combined with their enthusiasm for passing on their knowledge and talent, that makes them so popular with learners – and employers. Willmott Dixon is one of the UK’s largest construction companies, and every year over the last 20 years has sent between 40 and 50 trainees to Bircham. Willmott Dixon trainees come from all walks of life, including trainees who are office based as well as those working on a construction site. They come to Bircham fromWillmott Dixon’s IT departments, finance, even legal too. It’s all about making sure they understand the industry and can relate to the people they work with. “It isn’t the intention of the scheme for them all to come out as plumbers or bricklayers,” laughs Sally Cleaver, Group Diversity Manager at Willmott Dixon. “Rather, it’s to give them an awareness of what our supply chain partners do. The trainees tell me they’re shattered at the end of the day, working outdoors in all sorts of weather, and say now they appreciate the hard work being done by our partners on site. The trainees often remark on the professionalism of the instructors, and say the courses are pitched just at the right level.” All the Willmott Dixon management trainees seem enthused about gaining an insight into manual trades such as brickwork at Bircham. “It’s a lot nicer than I expected!” says 21-year-old Katie Porter from Wyboston, looking round the vast campus. “Everyone’s really friendly, and there are more women than I expected. People still think construction’s male-dominated, but in the office where I work the men are outnumbered by the women.” “The campus is massive!” says 20-year-old Elliot Brown fromNewcastle. “The facilities are great as well. The instructors Jamie and Phil have been brilliant.” You’d think Bircham facilities might be rough and ready, but many of the apprentices are pleasantly surprised to discover there are 134 en-suite bedrooms on site, 53 of them within the Birches hotel, plus an additional 123 rooms specifically for youth apprentices. The Birches has a bar with a big screen TV and the wide variety of meals and snacks at the restaurant. There is also a laundry and a Costa Coffee onsite. “The facilities are fab,” says management trainee Gina Gray, 23, fromManchester. “It’s a very practical course, which is what I like. The instructors are great – eccentric and brilliant!” One of these instructors, Jamie Farr, 37, has worked at Bircham for a year and has been in the construction trade his whole working life. Jamie loves teaching at Bircham, and has noticed that more of his apprentices are from non-traditional backgrounds. “There’s every sort of background here,” says Jamie, “It’s very different from the traditional image of construction. We have lots of women coming through, for instance. This is a boom time for the industry.” Willmott Dixon’s Sally Cleaver agrees that times are changing. “Over the last couple of years we’ve seen a noticeable increase in the number of women going to Bircham,” says Sally. “That changes the dynamic of the group. Some of the trainees are a bit nervous before going, but the feedback at the end is very favourable. The trainees love it!” Bircham Newton: a very constructive campus TRAINING: 3 www.cpa.uk.net CPA Bulletin > August 2019 43 12/07/2019 14:59