Pupils from a Porthmadog primary school paid a special visit to a £7.5 million building site in their home town to learn about safety on site and to have an exclusive look at the building as it develops.
Award-winning Flintshire-based builders Anwyl Construction are building the Hafod y Gest Extra-Care complex on the site of a former care home in the heart of Porthmadog.
The project has been commissioned by leading social housing providers Grwp Cynefin in partnership with Gwynedd Council, and will consist of a 40-apartment Extra Care development offering independent living with access to 24-hour care and community use.
Pupils from Ysgol Eifion Wyn visited Hafod y Gest, which is due to be completed next spring, and were given a talk on site safety by Project Manager Huw Hughes who was also able to share his expertise with the children and answer their questions on construction.
Clerk of Works for Grwp Cynefin Goronwy Jones was also on hand to talk about his career and experiences and arranged for the children to see a demonstration of the site machinery in action.
Debbie Humphreys, Year Five Teacher at Ysgol Eifion Wyn, said: “Our visit certainly raised awareness of the dangers of playing on building sites – so important at the start of the summer holidays.
“It also allowed us to discuss the importance of looking after older members of society.
“The children learnt about all kinds of job possibilities that such a project can provide, which made them think about their futures.”
Anwyl Construction’s Communications Coordinator Natalie Palframan said: “There are so many opportunities for careers in construction today and we wanted to give them a taste of this and show them how the industry works and the skills required.
“I’m sure some of them will go on to work in the construction industry across a range of disciplines and it would be nice to think that perhaps a visit like this might have sparked their interest in making it their careers.
“We also hope to particularly inspire the girls in the class as there are so many exciting opportunities for women in construction today.”
Goronwy Jones said “We’re pleased that the children have had the opportunity to visit the site and see the work that’s going on next to their school.
“We hope that this work will be the beginning of a lasting link between the school and Hafod y Gest, and the wider community.”
Tom Anwyl, Director of Anwyl Construction, said: “We are delighted to be working again with Grwp Cynefin and with Gwynedd Council on what is a very significant development for Porthmadog.
“Hafod y Gest will provide high quality facilities for elderly people in the area as well as important employment and investment in the local economy.”
For more information on the Anwyl Group go to http://www.anwylgroup.co.uk
