Lovell is helping two young men to start their careers in the construction industry by taking them on as apprentices.

The company has recruited Kyle Farr and Casey Clarke to its national apprentice training programme. Kyle, who lives in Norwich city centre, has joined Lovell as a trainee carpenter, while Casey, from Beccles, Suffolk, has been taken on as a trainee bricklayer.

Kyle, 23, is starting his career working in his home city on a £735,000 scheme which Lovell carrying out in Barclay Road to build seven new affordable homes for Orbit Housing Group. Casey, 18, has joined the Lovell team working on a £1.9 million project to build 18 new homes in Hellesdon, Norfolk, which the company is undertaking for Saffron Housing Trust in partnership with Norfolk County Council and Broadland District Council.

Before joining Lovell, Kyle and Casey were both studying for construction qualifications at City College Norwich.


"I'd worked in the retail industry since I left school and I was looking for a change of career," explained Kyle. "At that time, I was doing some carpentry work on my house and found that I really enjoyed it. I enrolled at City College Norwich and while I was studying there, Lovell came in to give a presentation. The apprenticeship scheme really appealed to me so I decided to apply."

"Lovell visited City College regularly while I was there and invited a group of students to one of its construction sites," said Casey. "I'd previously been thinking about finding a plumbing apprenticeship but seeing the new housing development convinced me to study bricklaying instead."

In addition to learning their trades on site, Kyle and Casey will be attending the Lovell Craft Academy, the company's national apprentice training centre at Stephenson College in Coalville, Leicestershire. They will attend college – where they will be studying for NVQ Level 2 qualifications in carpentry and bricklaying respectively – on a block release basis.

On site, Kyle and Casey are closely supervised by qualified tradespeople and receive support and guidance from Lovell Regional Training Advisor Shirley Palmer, who oversees their training.

Adam Ronaldson, Chief Executive of Saffron Housing Trust, said: "Saffron is committed to training opportunities with five trainees in our Saffron Asset Management team. We are therefore delighted that others can benefit from the construction being carried out on our behalf. The development of the former Ethel Tipple Court will facilitate new opportunities for tenants when they move into our accommodation which is scheduled to complete in February 2010."

(CD/BMcC)