HUNDREDS of places for adults and youngsters wishing to find a career in construction have been created thanks to the expansion of a Clacton college campus.

Colchester Institute’s Clacton campus has undergone a major refurbishment, with two multi-purpose workshops created in order to expand its existing construction training facilities.

The Construction Skills Centre includes facilities for brickwork, tiling, plastering, carpentry, kitchen fitting and plumbing.

Based in Church Road, the centre has the capacity to train hundreds of people, who will no longer have to travel out of the district for training.

Students can carry out training around their employment, with day and evening options available.

The training facilities will include industry-standard equipment and will also allow students leaving school to access full-time courses.

It will cater to youngsters hoping to start a career in construction, adults looking for part-time training and even home owners looking to enhance their DIY skills.

Adam Ward, director of science, technology, engineering and maths at Colchester Institute, said: “The opportunity to change careers and access high-earning jobs within the construction sector is very real.

“This centre provides training that focuses on the specific skills and behaviours employers are looking for to fill current skills shortages. For candidates with the right work ethic, this means quick routes to much needed employment within the construction industry.”

The expansion is supported by Essex County Council and sponsored by Phelan Construction.

Matt Jolly, pre-construction manager at Phelan Construction, said: “The construction sector overall is in the midst of a serious nationwide skills shortage.

“This is causing increasing labour costs and limits to construction activity and is predicted to only get worse.

“The Chartered Institute of Building has reported that the industry needs to find 157,000 new recruits by 2021 in order to keep up with demand.

“We take this industry-wide problem very seriously and wanted to work with our local training provider and educator, Colchester Institute, to develop a tangible, practical solution that could help start tackling this problem in our area.

“We’re looking forward to working closely with Colchester Institute to continue to grow and establish this fantastic training facility.”