VINCI Building choose York College to 'accelerate confidence and competence' of their employees

Two years ago, VINCI Building, who operate in more than 120 different countries, chose our Sim Balk Lane campus when looking for an education provider to deliver the HNC in Construction Management for England (Site Supervisor) course to five of their technical apprentices from different parts of the country including North Wales, the Midlands, Manchester and Bradford.

Having combined their workplace duties with day-release studies on a Thursday, the quintet of Jake Astell, Ollie Francis, Harris Golden, Raees Khan and Tom Shaka are now preparing for their final assignments before graduating this summer.

All five students, who are aged from 20 to 21, have found that the course units on the Yorkshire & Humber Institute of Technology-supported qualification closely mirror the eight different departments they are rotated around on VINCI Building’s work sites and in the company offices, where they sample Engineering, Construction Management, Design and Quantity Surveying, Commercial, Building Services, Estimating, Planning and Digital Engineering.  

Milena Davis, Head of Early Careers at VINCI Building, pointed out that the company had selected York College as their preferred location for the apprentices due to our “strong reputation of delivering vocational and technical qualifications in the Built Environment”.

She has also found College to be “extremely accommodating and flexible” education partners with “incredibly supportive” tutors and assessors.

With most of the VINCI Building students on a degree apprenticeship pathway, the HNC course also provides a respected stepping stone to university progression, where a five-year part-time course can be reduced by one or even two years due to the knowledge already accrued on the Level 4 qualification which, in turn, can lead to significant savings on tuition fees for companies.

On the success of the partnership, Ms Davis declared: “We chose York College to collaborate with as they were able to accommodate a last-minute request.

It was important for us that the apprentices studied together, creating bonds in and out of VINCI Building with a support network.

“York College was extremely accommodating and flexible with a strong reputation of delivering vocational and technical qualifications in the Built Environment.  The tutors have been incredibly supportive, and the structure of the day-release model has allowed our employees to immediately apply their learning on site, which has accelerated both their confidence and competence. 

“Ken, the assessor, has also shown huge support to the apprentices on the practical side of the course.” 

VINCI Building covers the costs of the students’ course, travel and an overnight hotel, as well as providing a meal allowance, with Ms Davis going on to highlight the benefits of multiple apprentices from different areas of the UK attending as one company cohort.

“Sending five employees from different sites across the country, sitting the same course, has created a unique internal network, along with bridging the gap between operational experience and formal qualifications,” she explained.

“The apprentices have been able to share experiences, benchmark practices, and bring back consistent knowledge to their respective teams. It’s particularly valuable for those progressing from site-based roles into supervisory or management positions, giving them the opportunity to learn different areas during their rotation in the business.”

Course tutor Andrew Pulleyn, meanwhile, has witnessed how the presence of the VINCI Building students has had a positive impact on the rest of the class. 

“Introducing students from a wider area – and not just from York – has been excellent and really does broaden the experience for other students,” he pointed out. “For a very large company, VINCI are also really open, so it’s given us a good insight into what it’s like to work for a business of their size. 

“We often get a lot of students from SMEs (Small Medium Enterprises) so it’s good for them to see the scope of work covered by an international business like VINCI. All our students from VINCI are involved in very different projects all around the country and it’s as interesting and informative for us as tutors to learn what they’ve been doing in the past week, as it is us actually teaching them, so we’ve really welcomed having them.”

Andrew added that he has been impressed with the commitment of the VINCI Building students as they balance work commitments with their Higher Education studies, often travelling to and from sites that are not necessarily close to home either.

He believes the day-release model, meanwhile, is the right one to avoid the course becoming “quite intrusive” in terms of the company’s need for the apprentices to be on site during the rest of the week, but they are given reading material to take away with them and Andrew is always contactable via Microsoft Teams or by email during their time outside of College.

The course also complements VINCI Building’s efforts in the workplace to expose their technical apprentices to every aspect of the construction profession and enable them to make an informed choice about their future vocational route.

“The units are very broad so the qualification supports their work duties very well,” Andrew said. “Some want to go on to university, some want to do site engineering and surveying, some want to do design and it helps them decide what their aspirations are going to be.

“The HNC has always been highly regarded in the industry and by our employers. Quite often some of the trainees will do nothing more than a HNC and go on to work as technical professionals.

“We call it the Key to the Golden Gate, because it allows you to apply for jobs in the technician field, but we do try and encourage students to go and complete their studies with a degree. The HNC will also normally give them some remission from a degree.

“Five years is a typical timeframe for a degree in construction, but we have students who will start in year two or even be exempted until year three. That’s obviously a win-win for an employer when it can cost £6,000 a year to do a degree.” 

Harris Golden, from Manchester, intends to progress to university and also admits that the HNC has helped him decide that a construction career in the commercial or site management sectors, with a focus on hiring and purchasing, are what appeal to him the most.

He added: “With VINCI, I’m rotating in the different fields, which goes hand-in-hand with the course because it covers a broad range as well. It’s a well-recognised qualification within the industry and, at the end of it, I can select what I’ve preferred from all the different fields and pursue that career path.

“It has helped solidify my knowledge and it’s a solid qualification to back up the experience I am getting in the field. It is helping me develop and I can go on to do a degree and it reduces the time that that takes. 

“Some people come in to work with all singing-and-dancing degrees but that’s all they have got and they have no experience in the industry, whereas we are getting a balance of both by doing this course on day release and I don’t think you can beat that. It’s unmatched because you’re getting the best of both worlds. You are also employed, so you’re avoiding the debt because it’s funded for us.”

Harris went on to outline how the standard of the tuition and quality of resources at York College have helped him prosper on the HNC course. 

“Andy has been really supportive as our tutor,” he said. “If you need anything, you can drop him a message on Teams and he gets back to you pretty quick.

“The resources are good, too. We’ve got plenty of total stations for surveying and all the PCs have Revit software on them.”

On the benefits of studying alongside fellow VINCI Building apprentices and employees from other construction companies, Harris added: “It’s been good to learn about the different schemes that are happening at other VINCI sites in the country and it’s been good to get an insight on the other apprentices’ experiences while sharing yours and what you’ve learned. 

“We have a good friendship group, but we also get on with the people from outside of VINCI and often do things like having lunch together.”

Tom Shaka, also from Manchester, agrees that the course camaraderie, along with support from VINCI Building, has benefitted his progress on the HNC. 

“We’ve all become friends and it’s made coming to College a lot easier,” he admitted. “I couldn’t imagine doing it without them and we all help each other out when needed. 

“You group up together and try and tackle everything together. With work, we haven’t had much time to do our final assignment – the presentation – so I asked if I could work up here on the Wednesdays and VINCI were completely OK with that without me taking any time off work. 

“I get a lot of work done that way and I’ll be doing it for the next two or three weeks as well to make sure I box off the assignment and don’t get stressed.”

Despite having started the technical apprenticeship with no prior background in construction, Tom credits the course with helping lift his confidence levels to the point where he aspires to become one of VINCI Building’s youngest project managers and work overseas for the company. 

“I came into the industry with no construction background and have learnt everything from scratch,” he explained. “I’ve found the course has really helped me with terminology and the setting-out sessions and Construction Management were very good modules that I enjoyed.

“There have also been challenging modules that have pushed boundaries and required a bit more time, but the confidence I’ve built in College has been a booster because all the software is top-notch and we use the same equipment that we see at work. There are some younger leaders and project managers on VINCI sites and they’ve obviously done really well, but I joke around and say that I’m going to get where they are at an even younger age. 

“Even though I don’t have a construction background, I feel I can boost the areas I’m good at, like talking to people and making sure everything is done safely. The course is also a stepping stone to carrying on and progressing towards uni to get my qualifications and that will give me the opportunity to move around the world because, with VINCI, we are connected to over 100 countries.”

To learn more about our HNC in Construction Management for England (Site Supervisor) course, click here

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