Meldrum is delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with Perth High School that will see us continue offering work experience placements for pupils with a keen interest in joinery and the construction industry.
The ‘Stepping Stones’ project is a unique Perth High School initiative which aims to support young people who may find it difficult to get into employment by helping them get experience of the workplace and receive mentoring from local businesses.
We have a great relationship with Perth High School, with many of our team being former pupils themselves, including our CEO, Derek.
Meldrum have supported Perth High School’s ‘Stepping Stones’ project for 4 years and have helped numerous pupils gain real life work experience and supported them into achieving full-time employment.
Colin Murray, Depute Headteacher at Perth High School is one of the senior members behind this great initiative.
Colin, commented,” Perth High School are truly grateful to Meldrum Construction for their support over the last 4 years of our ‘Stepping Stones’ project.
Year 5 has been incredibly challenging and despite the huge difficulties faced by local businesses, Meldrum Construction have once again proved their commitment to supporting this project by rolling their sleeves up and getting some of our young people into the workplace.
The overall goal of this project is to support young people who find school challenging and to create new opportunities for them.
They may lack direction, or they may not have the support network around them that can provide them with the help they need.
The aim is to keep them in education by providing relevant and meaningful opportunities until they are ready to take the ‘next step.”
Each year, Perth High School identify a number of young people who would benefit from being part of the ‘Stepping Stones’ project.
This year Meldrum is delighted that Rosie Pople, an S4 pupil has accepted an invitation to take part in the ‘Stepping Stones’ project and will be joining our team for work experience.
Colin said “Rosie is an energetic young lady who is always active and finds classroom-based learning challenging. She is a talented sportsperson and skilled in the workshop.
Her ambition is to get an apprenticeship within the trades and to join the armed forces at some point in the future.
Rosie wants to leave school at the end of this session and has taken on the tough task of trying to break into a workplace which is traditionally male dominated.
All these reasons make Rosie the perfect fit for ‘Stepping Stones’ and we are delighted that Meldrum Construction shares our ambition to recruit more females into the construction industry.”
Rosie will be joining our joinery division and will be working alongside our Joinery Contracts manager, Douglas Calder and his team of experienced joiners. Rosie will gain first-hand experience and exposure to a wide range of joinery fundamentals, including carpentry, maintenance and installations, to name a few.
On the announcement of Rosie joining our team for work experience, Derek Petterson, CEO commented, “We look forward to welcoming Rosie into our team and I am confident that this will be an extremely beneficial experience for her.
As a former Perth High School pupil, it gives me great pleasure that we are able to give back and to provide work experience opportunities to pupils.
Rosie is a great fit for us and especially with her ambitions of joining the Armed Forces. Meldrum proudly holds the prestigious Silver Armed Forces Covenant and with my personal experiences of the military, we will also be able to support her on this front, alongside her keen interests in joinery.”
Rosie’s mother, Alice, is very grateful for this opportunity and commented,
“Rosie has always been very hands-on and physical. I am really pleased she has been given this opportunity to develop useful skills for her future’
Pictured from left to right, Colin Murray, Depute Headteacher at Perth High School, Rosie Pople, S4 pupil & Douglas Calder, Joinery Contracts Manager at Meldrum