Seven young trainees from Glasgow and three from Inverclyde have been given an important leg up on the career ladder thanks to an 18 month placement with local building contractor McDermott Group.

All ten were placed with the company by national charity Action for Children Scotland, which works with children and young adults from disadvantaged backgrounds throughout the country. During their 18 month placement the trainees will learn key transferable skills while training as Domestic Energy Assessors.

By learning on the job, the young adults are given the opportunity to earn a wage while also working towards an industry recognised qualification. Upon successful completion of the work placement and professional qualification, each of the trainees will be offered a permanent position with McDermott Group.

22-year-old Jade Dallas, who started her placement with McDermott Group three months ago and is based in its Glasgow office, said: “My placement has been brilliant so far, everyone is so kind and helpful. I’m really enjoying learning about the different types of houses and how to do Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESH) surveys. I hope that in the future I’ll be able to carry out EESH surveys by myself and I’m also excited to learn how to do Computer Aided Design drawings.”

19-year-old Shaun Cox, who is now almost six months into his placemen at McDermott Group’s office in Inverclyde, added: “I’m really enjoying my placement so far and it’s great to be able to work towards a professional qualification while also earning a living. The work is varied and interesting, everyone at McDermott Group has been so friendly, and I’m enjoying having a stable work routine.”

In partnership with Action for Children Scotland, McDermott Group is also supporting a literacy course for trainees that have left school with little or no qualifications. Part funded by WEA Scotland, the course teaches young people basic skills in reading and writing so that they are able to thrive in their traineeship and have a better chance of passing their professional qualification.

19-year-old Charlie Dickens, who previously worked as a labourer and recently started his placement based in McDermott Group’s Glasgow office, said: “I’m really enjoying the work so far. It’s exciting getting to travel around Scotland and at the moment I’m helping to draw floor plans for Energy Performance Certificates, which is great fun. Being able to work towards a professional qualification and brush up on my literacy skills is a huge bonus and I’m really excited for what the future holds at McDermott Group.”

Maria Williamson, children’s services manager at Action for Children Scotland, said: “We are really grateful for all the support that McDermott Group has provided to our employability services in Scotland.

“Every day, we work with young people who face challenges securing sustainable employment, in order to get them job ready. In addition to providing industry-led training and certification, a key to our success in securing employment and training for some of the hardest to reach young Scots has been relationships like this one. Through working with companies like the McDermott Group, we have been able to offer young people specialist training, on-site experience as well as a route into full-time employment.”

Darren McDermott, managing director of McDermott Group, added: “Too many young people in Scotland are leaving school with little or no qualifications and are struggling to get on the career ladder as a result. That is why we decided to work with Action for Children Scotland and give young people, who may have had an unconventional start in life, a helping hand onto a rewarding career path.

“Each of the young people we have taken on has brought something different to their respective roles, and it is hugely rewarding for our existing staff to see these young people begin to flourish with the correct support and training in place. Part of this is through the literacy course that we are supporting, which helps the trainees develop and hone their literacy skills and gives them a better chance of achieving their professional qualification at the end of their placement with us, after which we hope they will stay on in a permanent role.”

Craig Finnie, education coordinator at WEA, the largest provider of adult education in Scotland and England, said: “Our workplace literacies project has been supporting workers in the west of Scotland since 2004 and we are delighted to have been asked to contribute to the great work being carried out by McDermott Group with their trainees. WEA would like to congratulate each of the young people on their achievements with the project.”

On March 13, McDermott Group continued their support of Action for Children Scotland with representatives from the company attending a parliamentary reception entitled ‘Improving Wellbeing Through Inclusion’, hosted by the charity and Kezia Dugdale MSP.