A new construction college has opened in east London providing thousands of training opportunities for local people.

The new centre will give Londoners at Thames House the chance to develop the skills to help deliver the venues and infrastructure for the London 2012 Games and other significant construction projects across the UK.


There will be around 2,000 training places a year in much needed trades including concreting, steel fixing, flooring and highways maintenance.

Thames House is one of three planned construction training centres in east London. The 'digger school' on the Olympic Park is being relocated to a permanent site in the Royal Docks; and negotiations are underway for the third centre.

Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell said: "With the workforce for the Olympic Park and Olympic Village expected to peak at 11,000 in 2010, Thames House is giving people the chance to capitalise on these job opportunities by giving them the skills to work on the Olympic site."

(CD/JM)