Management trainees strive for the top in the world of construction

Sewell Construction continues to encourage and nurture talent from within to enable business growth.

Management trainees are currently gaining vital first-hand experience on site, realising their potential and aiming to climb the career ladder in the future.

Cameron Hodgson, 24, is the first Management Trainee to be based at Sewell’s West Yorkshire office in Leeds and has worked on his first complete structural job, gained first aid skills, completed a site management training course and enrolled at college, all since joining the business in March.

He attends Leeds College of Building one day per week to study a HNC Level 4 in Construction in a Built Environment, while continuing his role with Sewell for the rest of the week to supplement the technical side of his qualification.

Cameron is a former Greenhead College A-Level pupil, which Sewell has also completed work on, and studied an English with business degree at the University of Huddersfield.

He completed work experience with Sewell before joining the team and is gaining Site Manager experience at Athelstan Community Primary School in Sherburn in Elmet, North Yorkshire, as work continues on the school’s major extension and refurbishment.

Cameron said: “I’m really enjoying everything I’m learning.

“In construction, you see all aspects of the building starting from the ground up, and Sewell offered a programme that was totally hands on from the beginning.

“It’s great to be involved in a company I can invest in and which can invest in me in terms of learning. I want to keep going and this is the kind of company which encourages that.

“My current role involves managing sub-contractors directly on site to meet deadlines, reviewing designs and drawings from the client, assessing their application and buildability, planning upcoming works and ensuring their successful delivery, and general site assistance directly to the site manager.

“I’ve worked alongside a range of talented personnel, from site engineers, quantity surveyors and even Sewell directors, which has enriched my learning journey and offered an insight into the type of career path I can carve for myself at Sewell.

“I’m looking forward to the next project and developing what feels like a wealth of knowledge I’ve gained already.”

Management Trainee Ash Wray, 20, joined Sewell Construction in July having previously worked as a Mechanical Design Engineer designing airport conveyor belt systems as far afield as Canada.

He is completing a combined engineering degree at Scarborough University one day per week and is gaining Site Manager experience as part of the Sewell Construction team at the new Integrated Care Centre in East Hull during the rest of his time.

Ash said he is enjoying his role and hopes to aspire to management level as his career progresses.

“It’s a two way thing – I’m delivering and Sewell is supporting me with my degree” he said.

“Although I would like to progress to management level, I would like to stay in touch with the construction and engineering side of the things. I’m looking forward to a long career here.”