Esh Group expands award-winning school programme to target science curriculum

Contractor expands its Construction in the Curriculum project to mark British Science Week 2024.

Esh Group has marked the first anniversary of its bespoke education programme, which aims to showcase direct links between the curriculum and careers in construction, by launching a science workshop.

Construction in the Curriculum (CITC) was successfully launched in February 2023 to deliver a timetabled subject through a construction and built environment lens, helping inform students about careers in the industry and how their education applies to real life job roles.

Coinciding with British Science Week, which takes place between 8-17 March, the new workshop will see Esh take over a science lesson with secondary school students set to gain insights into the life of an ‘environmental designer.’ Students will apply the curriculum they have previously learnt to a real-life scenario and will explore sustainable options and specifications on a construction project.

Throughout the first 12 months of CITC, Esh’s social value team has delivered its inaugural workshop ‘Maths in Construction’ to around 400 students at 12 North East schools. The workshop showcases ‘a day in the life of a quantity surveyor’, highlighting the importance of maths skills in a surveying role.

Kate Marshall-Nixon, social value manager within the North East, said:

“We’ve had a really successful 12 months of programme delivery and we wanted to build on the workshop feedback by introducing a second subject area to the CITC series.

“British Science Week always brings a focus back to raising aspirations for budding scientists, and by launching this new workshop we aim to highlight the importance of science skills in construction and showcase construction as an appealing career route to young people that enjoy the subject at school.”

Gearing up for a second year of the programme, Esh will offer both maths and science workshops to schools within the communities surrounding its construction schemes, including Oxclose Community Academy, Whickham High School and New College Durham. Seeking to develop teamwork, budgeting and sustainability skills, the science workshop will see students work together to design a low or zero carbon project before presenting their choices to the class.

Esh Construction formally launched the Science in Construction workshop at Oxclose Community Academy in Washington. Careers advisor, Mr Moses, commented:

“The CITC workshops allowed our students to apply skills they have learnt through the curriculum to a ‘real life’ employment scenario. As well as using maths skills, we have been one of the first schools to receive the science workshop – both have been excellent.  

“As well as applying maths and science principles, there are lots of opportunities to practice those all-important soft skills that employers love: teamwork, communication and presentation skills, critical thinking and time/resource management, amongst others.”

In the last 12 months, Esh Group has engaged with over 12,000 secondary school students across the North East and Yorkshire through employability and STEM-based career workshops.