The first ever DigIT! To BuildIT! Awards ceremony was held at Carnforth High School in Lancashire on 15 June, with Year 9 student Tyler Davidson winning the top prize, which included a camera, a memory card and an iPod. An initiative led by Proskills, the sector skills council for the process and manufacturing sector, the DigIT! to BuildIT! Programme links the study of buildings to the source materials used, aiming to encourage students to consider a career in the building products and extractives and minerals processing industries. The Carnforth students also visited Back lane quarry, where Tyler will return in future to set off a blast, part of his prize he is particularly looking forward to. “I am really going to enjoy setting off the blast, not many people get to do it,” he said. “I enjoyed going to the quarry, looking around and learning about the different products they make. We saw how they make the different grades of rock and asphalt, as well as the drills and dump trucks, everything the quarry has to offer.”

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Representatives from industry were on hand to present the awards and answer any queries from the students, illustrating the wider importance of the DigIT! to BuildIT! Programme. “The DigIT! To BuildIT! Programme is an ideal way for the industry to engage with schools,” said Jack Berridge, Executive Director of the Institute of Quarrying. With companies keen to adopt new technologies as they seek to improve efficiency, now is an exciting time for the extractives and minerals processing industries, according to Roger Tart, Assistant Quarry Manager at Back lane quarry. “There are opportunities for careers in fitting, operating mobile plants and in quarry management, roles which hold a great deal of responsibility,” he outlines. “As a company we are keen to attract the best young talent, people who can help us develop to meet emerging commercial challenges.”

Building strong links with schools is a key part of this wider agenda. Bardon Aggregates have developed a strong relationship with Carnforth High School over the years, which DigIT! to BuildIT! has helped to strengthen further. “For us as a school, working with the local community is really important. We do find some businesses are reluctant to allow us access due to health and safety, but Bardon Aggregates have been exceptional,” stressed Assistant Head Teacher Julie Rogerson. As part of the programme students studied the environment and materials around the local railway station, which Mrs Rogerson says will prove relevant to their GCSE’s. “A lot of building work has been completed on the Railway Station recently – there is a new visitor centre, cafe and shops , so DigIT! to BuildIT! was ideal for linking the two together. The project linked to geography and science so it all fitted really nicely,” she continued. “Many students start studying for their GCSE’s at the end of year 9 and some of the content of DigIT! to BuildIT! is directly related to the work they are examined on in Science. It also covers geology which will support their geography lessons.”

This kind of knowledge will serve the students well in their future careers, and Tyler says DigIT! to BuildIT! has given him some valuable insights into the building products and extractives and minerals processing industries. “I find quarrying really interesting. I want to go into quarrying more than I did before I entered DigIT! to BuildIT!,” he said. Other students have also shown an interest in quarrying, pointing towards a positive future for the industries. “After the assembly two groups of students asked about apprenticeships. For them to stop and think about the future is great. In year 10 they’ll be asked to think about the future so it’s very timely,” said Mrs Rogerson.