A Day in the Life of a Construction Worker

At Osborne, we understand that the best thing we can do for our industry is drawing in new young talent to the sector. We want to ensure we are devoting resources and time to resolving the skills shortage our industry is currently faced with. The best way to combat this is to ensure we are meeting young people and showing them what a thriving, innovative, and interesting role working in construction can be.

Recently we partnered with London Borough of Islington to create the ‘A Day in the Life of a Construction Worker’ programme for students to attend. The programme was led by our Assistant Site Manager, Usama Mohamed, and hosted at our Andover Estate site. This is a unique programme that Usama designed and then published onto the LBI 100 hours website which gives schools access to the programme. The programme was attended by a student from New River College. The day consisted of a site walkaround, utility drawings masterclass, one to one conversations with all trades foremen on site, explanation of the different trades, and informative presentations on the construction industry. The day gave industry insight but also offered a day’s experience around the time the student will be making decisions surrounding further qualifications and career routes.

Feedback from the Student and Teachers at New River College:

“I feel like I learned a lot and I saw what it is really like on a construction site. I got to speak to a lot of construction workers who gave me lots of advice.”

“I learned how to use a cat & genny and I used what I learned to find an electrical cable. I learned how to read a utility drawing by using the key on the drawing. I learned the importance of the sequence of works within the construction industry, and how there is always a trade to follow.”

“I learned that brick ties hold the bricks onto the blocks, and they need to be spaced out to a measurement. I also learned that the windows have lintels, and what they do for the brickwork on top of the window. I also learned about the movement joints in brickwork and why they are so important. I also saw how a weep hole works, and how it gets rid of the water.”

NRC Staff:

“I wanted to email you to thank you for the opportunity you gave our student yesterday. She really enjoyed her day with you and was so happy that she was given this opportunity.”