An imaginative training programme created by Esh Group, Deerness Valley Comprehensive School and New College Durham, and which promises jobs at the end, will today be launched by the Rt Hon Hilary Armstrong MP at Esh Group's new headquarters, Esh House, Bowburn North Industrial Estate, Bowburn, Durham.

The 'Fit for Employment' programme, which has already attracted national attention and praise, was conceived by Esh Group and developed in collaboration with Deerness Valley Comprehensive School and New College, Durham.  The aim is to give students;

• - knowledge of the construction industry and its employment opportunities
• - hands-on, practical experience of construction related tasks
• - experience of the ‘work ethic’
• - unrestricted access to a wide range of professionals working in the sector
• - the chance to further develop a number of transferable, employability skills
• - documented evidence of the benefits gained

It is expected that students taking part will;

• develop their skills and give them a real flavour of work
• raise their aspirations and help them set goals for themselves
• provide them with the opportunity to apply for a Modern Apprenticeship with Esh Group
• meet other employers

Since May, the first group of 100 students has been taking part.  Each week a new group of 10 students follows a programme which takes place at Esh Group training company, NECT, and at New College, Durham.

In January, 50 of these students will go forward to the next phase of training.  In July 2004 about 30 of them will, having applied and been accepted, go forward to the final phase after which Esh Group will offer a minimum of 20 Modern Apprenticeship places to students who have successfully completed the programme and their school exams.

Throughout the course students' work is reviewed and graded and their work is documented giving the students further evidence for their Progress Files and Records of Achievement, therefore all students taking part will gain further benefits.

The programme has already attracted national attention as the School has been invited by the Department for Employment and Skills (DfES) to put forward this programme as a Pathfinder project.

Commenting on the initiative, Brian Manning, Group Managing Director of Esh Group said;

'The adage "a business is only as good as its people" has never been more true than now.  Every year we make significant investment into the development of our staff to meet the changing needs of the construction industry and this initiative is yet another example of how important people are to our business and of our efforts to bring quality people through.

'We take great pride in the fact that many of our senior staff are 'home grown', indeed some are former students of Deerness Valley Comprehensive School itself.   We are delighted to have developed this initiative with the School and hope it will increase that number and give students an insight into construction, the chance to experience our working environment and to develop real skills for use in the real world.

'The range of work across the sector is highly diverse and offers a great choice of careers.  At Esh Group we are involved in everything from landscape contracting, fencing, plumbing, electrical and mechanical engineering, house building, social housing to civil engineering.  Projects can range from a few days to many years and from small values to many millions of pounds.  There have been huge changes in the industry recently; including increased technological change, so above all students must be flexible in their approach to learning.'

Anne Lakey, Headteacher at Deerness Valley Comprehensive, added;

'Deerness Valley School is a school that is rapidly moving forward.  Our partnerships within the community are crucial, as we believe that our aims will only be achieved through working together and we are very pleased to be working with Esh Group and value highly their commitment and expertise.

'Fit for Employment' is a unique and exciting programme based upon the common core purpose of many of our other partners, including Durham City Council, Connexions, Durham County Council, the Local Learning and Skills Council, New College Durham, One North East and our partner schools in the Deerness Valley.

'The programme is about ensuring that the students in our school are employable. It is about training opportunities which are 'real', accredited and mean something to employers. For some students it will even guarantee jobs.  This means that as a school we are leading the way across the country in providing effective and innovative vocational education.  We believe that all our students deserve the best. We demand high standards and expect our students to aim high. In doing this we expect to make our own contribution to the regeneration of the whole of the lower Deerness Valley area.'