Willmott Dixon has launched a new traineeship programme in Sandwell, Birmingham to help kickstart the careers of construction professionals in the area.

The programme, which aims to support Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council’s initiatives to tackle youth unemployment across the district, will be ran through JTL in partnership with the council’s Think Sandwell team.

The traineeship will comprise a 10-week programme for 11 NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) teenagers between the ages of 16 and 18 that live within Sandwell and the surrounding area.

The first five weeks of the programme will focus on employability, with CV writing workshops, interview skills/technique sessions and mock interviews. The group will also be working towards their Health and Safety Level 2 certificates, which will help them to later secure their CSS cards. As well as being offered functional skills education for those needing additional Maths, English or IT support.

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The programme runs alongside Willmott Dixon's £23.8 million development of three existing schools in Sandwell, which – once complete – will accommodate an additional 990 school places in the region as part of the council’s Schools Capital Programme 2019-2021.

The following four weeks of the course will provide students with work experience on one of Willmott Dixon’s four live sites across Sandwell – including one of three schools or their current integrated health care project. The students will work with the contractor's supply chain partners, in a trade of their choosing, with the end goal of securing further education, an apprenticeship or employment.

The programme is running from April to July and a ceremony will be held once it completes to celebrate each participant’s achievements throughout the scheme.