New Street and Grand Central

The redevelopment of New Street Station and Grand Central, including a new John Lewis Store:

James Skyrme: Coleman & Co.

Having struggled to find permanent employment and signing on for 2 months, James attended a pre-employment training course leading to an interview with Coleman & Co through the Employment Access Team. He successfully completed the course which gave him employability training, and went on to be recruited by Coleman & Co as a Demolition Operative.

“I now have a full time job that I love, I’ve been treated really well by Coleman & Co, and they’ve put me through loads of training – I’ve attended 6 courses so far. Having the means to support myself has made a real change in my life.” James Skyrme

Damien Walton: MACE

After successfully completing an HND course with Birmingham Metropolitan College, Damien was finding it difficult to find employment. Damien was supported to apply for a position with MACE, the project management agent working on behalf of Network Rail as part of the New Street redevelopment. Damien’s passion and expertise shone during a visit to the college by Richard Thorpe, Project Director at MACE, and he was offered employment as a Trainee CAD Technician.

“I’m really pleased that I have been given this opportunity and my passion and strong work ethic will enable me to make a positive contribution to the team, so that in 2015 I can proudly say that I helped build the station – I take huge pride in my work and for my first job this is a really amazing opportunity.” Damien Walton

“Connecting with the education and training sector to access young talent for the future job market is something that the City Council is doing with all the development projects in Birmingham It’s important that employers can access work ready individuals who can contribute to their businesses.” Kam Hundal, Project Jobs and Skills Lead