Engineers of the future impress the professionals at careers event
The engineers of the future were given an insight into a career in the highways sector this week when members of the National Highways and Balfour Beatty Atkins team working on the M25 junction 10 upgrade spoke to students from East Surrey College in Redhill.
Angela Wade, Sam Bower and Sajni Vekaria, from the Balfour Beatty Atkins group
The team of 12 volunteers spoke to 100 students from the College’s Construction, Engineering, Business and Science courses. It was a great opportunity for the team to provide some insight into the different roles that support the M25, including Customer Engagement, Project Management, engineering and the Environmental roles. The students also got to hear more about future careers with National Highways and our partners Balfour Beatty Atkins.
Jayne Dickinson, Principal and Chief Executive, said:
This event was a great opportunity for our students to engage with employers in these exciting industries that are full of new career opportunities. I’d like to extend my gratitude to National Highways and Balfour Beatty Atkins for dedicating time to speak directly with our students. We are looking forward to further collaborations with these companies to continue building our employer relationships and inspiring our students.
Level 3 Business student Elizabeth said:
It was cool to hear about how the digital sector use drones across the country to capture aerial images and videos of the work happening on site.
East Surrey College offers full-time and part-time courses as well as Apprenticeships, University Level and new Level 3 T Level qualifications for the Construction and Engineering sector. Students attending the College train in spacious industry-standard workshops, developing practical skills using modern equipment. You can find out more about their courses and register for their open events at the East Surrey College website
Junction 10 on the M25 is one of the busiest in the country and experiences large queues and heavy congestion on a daily basis. It also has one of the highest recorded collision rates across England’s motorway and major A roads nationally. National Highways is planning a vital upgrade which will improve journeys for hundreds of thousands of drivers who use the junction each day and reduce collisions by around a third.
Jonathan Wade and Navjot Gill from the M25 junction 10 project team at National Highways
Jonathan Wade, National Highways Project Manager, added:
It was great to meet the students and talk to them about the M25 junction 10 improvement project, and the different roles that make up our team. The students were really engaged, and we were able to share some hopefully useful tips to help them start their career pathways.
The scheme will also involve some of the most extensive environmental work ever carried out by National Highways, restoring over 22 hectares of heathland as well as planting new woodland. The UK’s first ever heathland green bridge will link walkers and cyclists to these important habitats for the first time.
National Highways is currently awaiting the Development Consent Order decision to press on with the next stage of the scheme, with a decision expected by May 2022. Anyone interested in finding out more should visit the M25 junction 10 web page
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