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Wick school revamp to create work for 400


By Will Clark

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Miller Construction was named by Hub North Scotland as the preferred bidder for the £50 million programme of work including Wick High School.
Miller Construction was named by Hub North Scotland as the preferred bidder for the £50 million programme of work including Wick High School.

THE national company behind the project to build three new schools in Wick is looking to create 400 jobs over the next two years.

And Miller Construction has pledged it will look to employ the majority of its workforce from the far north as part of its deal with Hub North Scotland, the public/private joint venture company.

It staged a ‘Meet the Buyer’ event in Wick on Wednesday when representatives from 50 companies across the county heard about the job opportunities coming on stream with the construction of the new Wick High School along with its two new primary schools.

Business development director David Stobie said it makes sense to hire labour locally and said the project would provide a welcome boost for the local construction industry as well as other sectors.

"Even in an UK context, this is a massive project and it is important for us to get a good supply chain," he said.

"Geographically where Caithness is, it is important that the local supply chain get the chance to help us deliver it.

"It is the right thing to do not just for the economy but also for us – the most efficient thing to do is get as many workers from the area as possible.

"The event is aimed at attracting, joiners, roofers, plumbers and cladders, but we are also speaking to taxi firms, bed and breakfasts, hotels and catering suppliers as there will be a lot of people who are coming to work on this project."

He added: "It’s not just the bricks and mortar we’re looking into – we are also looking at the wider context of the project.

"There will be certain elements such as steelwork packages that might be difficult to find in the far north, but that is why we have held the engagement day to find out what is here."

Mr Stobie said the 400 jobs would be created over a period of two years with construction expected to start in October and be completed by June 2015.

At any one time, he said that there would be up to 200 people working at both of the sites.

Miller Construction was named by Hub North Scotland as the preferred bidder for the £50 million programme of work.

The plans involve building the 3-18 campus which will incorporate Wick High School and the merged Pulteneytown Academy and South Primary School and a separate primary to replace the existing North and Hillhead schools.

Tenant liaison officer Heather Sharkey said the company is committed to delivering the project on time with the help of the local supply chain as well as bringing community benefit to the area.

"We plan to do education work and talk about construction as a potential career as well as offer work experience opportunities," she said.

"It is also planned to create apprenticeship jobs as well as raise money for community events."


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