A group of Year 8 girls from schools in Bridgwater and Weston-Super-Mare recently took part in a two day Challenge for Women project at Bridgwater College, with the support of EDF Energy, which aims to raise awareness of the construction and engineering industries.

The group consisted of 40 girls who were selected for the project from schools including Bridgwater College Academy, Haygrove School and Robert Blake Science College in Bridgwater and Broadoak Mathematics and Computing College and Worle School in Weston. During the project the girls met role models from the industry and took part in a number of activities including computer aided design, electrical installation, plumbing and bridge building. The group will return to the College in Years 9, 10 and 11 to experience more areas of construction and engineering, including, a visit to Hinkley Point B, operating plant machinery and building a mini bungalow, to name a few.

Alka Shaji, pupil at Broadoak Mathematics and Computing College in Weston said,

“I came on the project as I wanted to learn more about these industries and the skills involved in them. The course has helped me to realise that construction and engineering are good career choices and I hope to influence other girls to get more involved in these areas.”

Alivia Keirle, pupil at Robert Blake Science College in Bridgwater added,

“The past two days have really opened my eyes to construction and engineering. I now know what opportunities will be available to me at College and in the future.”

Amelia Davies, parent of Beth Hayes said,

“The Challenge for Women project offers a fantastic opportunity for girls to gain a real understanding of what is involved in these careers. Beth hasn’t decided what career she would like to follow once she leaves school so the more options she has, the better to help her with making this decision and choosing her GCSE options. She had a fantastic time on the first two days of this course and can’t wait for the follow up in December. The course has really opened her eyes to the possibility of a wide range of careers in the engineering & construction sectors; she came home proudly telling me that she now knows how to wire a switch!”

Nick Roberts, Section Leader for Construction at Bridgwater College said,

“This is a very worthwhile project; the group were all extremely engaged in the activities they took park in. We aimed to inspire these young women to think about a career in these areas and have definitely managed to do this.”

Tom Thayer, EDF Energy’s Inspire Education Programme Advisor said,

“We are working hard to promote construction careers to women in order to help address the gender imbalance in the industry. The construction of Hinkley Point C will create 25,000 job opportunities and I am proud that we have been running this scheme in Somerset since 2011 – helping female students make more informed choices about construction and engineering careers.”