• Over 100 attend 4th annual careers evening at Clark Contracts

The event, held during Scottish Apprenticeship Week, took place on March 5 and attracted over 100 attendees who had the opportunity to meet the company’s recruitment team and current employees to find out more about careers at Clark Contracts. Representatives from Glasgow Caledonian University, the Construction Industry Training Board, West College Scotland, City of Glasgow College and Invest in Renfrewshire also attended to speak to guests.

Clark Contracts’ learning and development manager delivered presentations throughout the evening on the company’s Academy and apprenticeship opportunities, including numerous examples of staff members who started as apprentices and have progressed into other management roles within the company.

Also on hand to talk to attendees were a variety of Clark Contracts’ staff, including quantity surveyors, contracts managers, estimators and apprentices who have progressed through the Academy themselves.

Gordon Cunningham, managing director at Clark Contracts, said: “It was fantastic to meet so many skilled, talented and enthusiastic people at a variety of levels, who could be valuable additions to the team here. Another encouraging factor was the number of parents who attended with their children. We are working hard to close the skills gap in the construction industry and it is vital that parents and other influencers such as teachers buy in to what we are doing here with our Academy.”

• Taylor Wimpey’s star apprentice bricklayer proves he’s top level

As Scottish Apprentice Week (4 -8 March 2019) kicks off with its focus on raising the importance of creating opportunities for young people right across Scotland, Jed Smith, aged 24, one of Taylor Wimpey East Scotland’s most successful apprentice bricklayers is proof that hard work and training on the job can lead to a successful start in your career.

Following a four year Modern Day Apprenticeship, Jed, from Easthouses near Dalkeith, has just completed his first six months as a fully qualified bricklayer, and he is now permanently part of Taylor Wimpey East Scotland’s team and making a valuable contribution to the business.

The young bricklayer has also celebrated success in a string of competitions during his apprenticeship, with a haul of wins over the past four years. Most recently, he claimed the top accolade at the 2018 Skillbuild for South Lanarkshire and he represented Scotland in the national final of that competition – placing fourth with a Highly Commended.

This rising star was also named as ‘Student of the Year’ in his final stretch at Edinburgh College last year.

Currently based at Taylor Wimpey’s Meadow Lea development in Bathgate, and noted as one of Taylor Wimpey’s rising stars, Jed is recognised for his consistency and quality of workmanship, which sets him apart as one of the best young bricklayers in Scotland.

Jed secured a four year Modern Day Apprenticeship with Taylor Wimpey East Scotland following his participation in the ‘Get into Home Building’ pilot programme that ran at Edinburgh College in August 2014.

• St Andrews guesthouse transformed to meet Fife property demand

 A St Andrews guesthouse and B&B is being converted into flats to meet rising demand for property in Fife, with support from a six-figure funding package from Bank of Scotland.

The 225 sq ft Georgian property is located opposite the University of St Andrews and is being transformed into four two-bedroom modern apartments. The property, Deveron House, had previously been operating as a guesthouse for 12 years.

Owners Graham and Marion Proctor, recognised the growing pressure on the private property market as the number of house hunters looking to buy property in Fife has continued to increase by 13% year-on-year since 2014.

To capitalise on the gap in the market, the Proctors gained support from Bank of Scotland that would allow them to convert the building into new homes.

• NHBC appoints Fiona Herbert as new head of human resources

Fiona Herbert has been appointed as the new head of human resources at NHBC.

Fiona joins NHBC from Santander having worked in a number of senior HR roles across industries including banking, asset management and the automotive sector.

NHBC chief executive Steve Wood said: “I am very pleased to welcome Fiona as our new Head of Human Resources.

“Her insights and experience will be a great asset to NHBC as we continue to develop our position within the house-building industry.”

Fiona, who has over 20 years working within HR, added: “As the UK’s leading warranty provider, NHBC has a key role to play in ensuring the quality of new homes for the people who live in them. I am particularly looking forward to helping the organisation develop, with a focus on a number of people and culture initiatives.”

• MSP marks Scottish Apprenticeship Week at New College Lanarkshire

Clare Adamson MSP has met with joinery Modern Apprentices earning while they learn at New College Lanarkshire.

The convenor of the Scottish Parliament’s education and skills Committee visited the Motherwell Campus at the start of Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2019 [March 4–8].

She met with the College’s assistant head of faculty of engineering, Danny Shearer, and its vocational programmes manager, Andrew Fretwell, before being taken on a tour of the engineering building where she was able to chat with first-year construction apprentices with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

New College Lanarkshire trains almost 900 Modern Apprentices through its partnerships with Skills Development Scotland and a number of commercial contracts.

Ms Adamson, who is a member of the SNP and represents the Motherwell and Wishaw constituency, said she was delighted to visit the College as her father, George Pickering, had started his lecturing career at Motherwell College.

• New sports pitches unveiled at Barony Campus

Councillor Douglas Reid, leader of East Ayrshire Council, has officially unveiled first two of four new sports pitches at the £68 million Barony Campus development – the biggest capital investment ever undertaken by the council.

The official opening unveiled two full-size floodlit, synthetic pitches, the larger of which is the same size as the pitch at BT Murrayfield, making it one of the biggest artificial playing surfaces in the country and designed to World Rugby standard.

Two more full-size grass pitches, lined for football and rugby will open in 2022 and the larger pitch will again be designed to World Rugby standards.

In addition to the four new pitches a new 400m all-weather four-lane running track with six lane sprint track will open later this year, equipping the Barony Campus with some of the best athletics facilities in the country.

• Russells puts sustainability on class agenda

Pitched roof tile manufacturer Russell Roof Tiles has joined the elite RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) CPD Providers Network, investing significantly in the development and training of architects and specifiers.

Joining the top manufacturers and suppliers across the UK to provide RIBA-approved training, Russell Roof Tiles’ CPD (Continuing Professional Development) Providers network membership is part of its drive to educate the market and broaden the wider understanding of pitched roofing materials and concrete roofing solutions.

Having already invested heavily in new product development in the past 12 months, Russell Roof Tiles’ training forms part of RIBA’s core curriculum and will be geared towards the importance of sustainability within roofing. The programme will also take a look at the long-lasting and environment credentials of concrete tiles, in an ever-changing weather climate.

The training will also touch on fixing options, emphasising the importance of products that meet today’s revised standards such as the BS 8612 - the British Standard for Dry-fixed Ridge, Hip and Verge Systems for Slating and Tiling.

• Edinburgh office rents outpace European rivals

Edinburgh’s buoyant office market has seen the Scottish capital break into the top 20 global business hubs in terms of prime office rents and rental growth, according to new research from Knight Frank.

The commercial property consultancy’s latest Global Outlook report found that Edinburgh’s estimated rental growth of 4.5% in 2018 outpaced a number of European capitals – including London, Dublin, and Madrid (all 0.0%).

Prime office rents in Edinburgh are expected to grow another 2.9% to £36 per sq. ft. in 2019, before reaching £40 per sq. ft. by the end of 2022. Its rental growth forecast for 2019 is in line with other UK cities included in the analysis – London and Birmingham (both 2.9%) – and ahead of global cities such as Paris (1.2%), New York (0.6%), and Tokyo (-0.5%).

Knight Frank said that rental growth in Edinburgh would likely continue to be driven by high levels of demand, combined with a restricted supply of Grade A accommodation.

While city centre average annual take-up of Grade A space has traditionally been around 220,000 sq. ft., in recent years it has consistently exceeded that figure. In 2018, Grade A take-up stood at 338,482 sq. ft.

• Coulter’s Candy sculpture comes to life

 The first image of the new Coulter’s Candy sculpture has been revealed.

Alongside the monument to Galashiels weaver-turned-sweet maker Robert Coltart - who wrote the world famous lullaby which is also known as Ally Bally Bee - two sculptures of a boy and girl will also be included in the final piece.

The design has now been approved by the Galashiels Stakeholder Group and is expected to be completed in two phases over the course of this year by Innerleithen sculptor Angela Hunter, with Robert Coltart being in place this summer and the boy and girl statues by the end of 2019.

The finished piece will be installed in the Market Square in Galashiels, as part of a new town trail supported by the Scottish Government.

The government provided a £1.18m regeneration grant last year, a proportion of which is being used to fund a £900,000 improvements programme within the town as part of the regeneration of the town.

Sculptor Angela Hunter, who is originally from Galashiels, worked alongside local historians Mary Craig and Graeme McIver and local Councillor Sandy Aitchison, who have all championed Coltart’s story alongside Energise Galashiels Trust.

An appeal in January for further information on Robert Coltart saw Angela receive messages from a number of people across Scotland and even Canada, which assisted her with the final design.

• Fife holiday park plans £2m investment

Fife’s five star Clayton Caravan Park has broken ground on a £2 million development.

The park’s new leisure complex will feature a swimming pool, spa, sauna, gymnasium and cafe, which will be open to the public.

An outdoor adventure playground and new car parks will also be created as part of the project, which is due to be completed later this year.

Clayton Caravan Park, located six miles west of St Andrews, has been owned and run by the Kennedy family since its inception in 1966.

Montrose-based Pert Bruce Construction Limited has been appointed as the principal contractor of the project.

Some preparation work for the development has already been done, with Pert Bruce due on site next month.