INTEREST is building for a new School of Construction in Blackbird Leys after the first in a series of taster days.

Pupils from the age of 14 will be able to train for careers in the construction industry for the first time at a new facility at the Cuddesdon Way campus of City of Oxford College.

Recruitment for the school officially opened on Tuesday.

It marks the first time pupils in the city will be able study full-time within a college environment from Year 8.

The school will form part of Activate Learning’s Oxfordshire Centre for Technology, Innovation and Skills, an £8 million redevelopment in Blackbird Leys.

Due to open in September 2016, it is being developed in partnership with construction employers which will provide employer accreditations, coaching and mentoring. Pupils will get work experience and project-based learning while studying for the BTEC qualification in construction and the built environment, alongside their GCSEs.

Luke Ball, 15, was one of the first pupils to go to a recruitment event. The John Mason School pupil, from Abingdon, said: “I hope to work in quantity surveying or structural engineering.

“I want to explore all the possible routes to find out which will help me get ahead in my career.”

Joseph White, 14, who is a pupil at St Gregory the Great School in Oxford, said: “I spend a day a week at City of Oxford College studying bricklaying. That has become my main focus. I enjoy the practical approach.”

His dad Patrick, from New Marston, said: “I trained in carpentry and have made a good career out of it.

“I think Joseph has a real talent for bricklaying and I want to ensure he gets the support he needs to develop it. Schools such as this can help young people to discover their talents.”

Sally Dicketts, group chief executive of Activate Learning, which runs City of Oxford College, said: “The School of Construction will offer something unique in Oxfordshire.

“Our taster events are the first opportunity for people to meet the team and the employer partners who will be helping to shape the curriculum, mentor students and offer work experience.”

The next taster event will be on May 20 at 5.30pm at the Said Business School.

To register visit cityofoxford.ac.uk/construction