The Level 2 Building students are continuing work on a new Cultural Learning Centre for the school.
The building includes a kitchen, dining area, staff office, mattress store, bathroom facilities and a meeting house/class teaching space.
The build began in June this year and will take until June 2016 to be fully completed. Most of the building students completed eight unit standards, which gave them a total of 42 credits. The students that completed all eight standards will also achieve the Level 2 National Certificate in Building & Construction and Allied Trades.
We will have it completely closed in by the end of the year and we have got all of the doors and windows in and about 90% of the exterior cladding on already. We have been very lucky with the contribution of local businesses - thanks to Action Scaffold, NetSafe NZ, Kaiapoi ITM, Precut Construction, EZ panel and Orange and Mango External Plasterers for all their support.
Some of the students who began the build have left school already to begin apprenticeships. Doing the Gateway programme for one day per week, they have been snapped up by local construction firms. Most of the students this year have been in Year 12 and are very keen on getting into apprenticeships. There will be a new Year 12 team to complete the build next year.
We are very proud of the achievements of the students and the fact that they have been spending some of their own time on the project in the weekends. The building is 196 square metres, which is the size of a four bedroom house, so to get it closed in by Christmas is a great effort, considering they didn't start until 13th June. The level of workmanship is outstanding and even the building inspectors have been impressed. They have not failed any inspections.
We look forward to seeing the progress and finished project. This is a brilliant way for these students to make their mark on their high school - leaving behind a little of their outstanding workmanship to be enjoyed by future generations.