Cambridge’s Cavendish III kicks off Open Doors 2020 in style

Thursday 13 February marked the official launch of Open Doors 2020 at Cambridge’s Ray Dolby Centre, the flagship building of the Cavendish III Development, ahead of Open Doors Week taking place between Monday 16 and Saturday 21 March 2020. Attended by a range of local schools and colleges, the launch event offered visitors the chance to go behind the scenes of the £300 million project, which is currently under construction by Bouygues UK and due to be completed by 2022.

Encompassing a world-leading physics research and teaching facility, and set to become a new home of the University of Cambridge’s Department of Physics, The Cavendish III Development represents an ideal backdrop to showcase the transformative impact of construction and the legacy it can help create.

Open Doors 2020 offers the chance for visitors to gain a unique insight into a career in construction by going behind the scenes of sites, offices, factories and training centres across the country. Designed to encourage young people and those looking for a change of career to consider joining the industry, the project highlights the wide range of opportunities available, including thousands of apprenticeship places. In addition to familiar site-based construction roles, many of the positions available are based externally, with companies requiring a back-office support network, front-of-house sales teams, and cutting-edge technical roles.

Over 195 sites are now registered and available for visitors to explore throughout Open Doors Week. New sites will continue to be added until the end of February, so keep an eye on the Open Doors website for up to date locations and sites in your local area.

Delivered by Build UK in partnership with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), Open Doors is supported by industry partners the Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) and the Home Builders Federation (HBF), alongside our community partners the Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The primary media partner is Construction News (CN).

Fabienne Viala, Chair of Bouygues UK, said: “We’re pleased to be supporting Open Doors once again, welcoming the next generation behind the scenes of some of our most exciting live projects. Attracting young people and individuals from diverse backgrounds into construction is essential to give us the fresh ideas and alternative perspectives to keep innovating. Open Doors is a great occasion to present the wide variety of roles available within the construction sector, as well as the exciting opportunities open to young people and those looking for a career change. I’m passionate about this industry and attracting new talent is one of my top priorities.”

Suzannah Nichol MBE, Chief Executive of Build UK, added: “Working takes up quite a bit of your day, so it is really important to find a job that gives you pride, satisfaction and enjoyment. It’s for these reasons that I love working in construction, an industry offering so many different roles, all of which play a part in building the world around us. I hope that by showing the next generation just how exciting the world of construction can be, they might just become the construction workers, project managers, directors, designers and clients of the future.”

Images © Neil Walker Photography