More than 40 students from Bradford College gained an insight into the world of construction after visiting the site of a new multi-million-pound surgical day case unit at St Luke’s Hospital recently.

The construction students were shown around the site by leading healthcare construction firm, Darwin Group, which is delivering the project for Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Thanks to Darwin Group’s innovative offsite modular construction methods, the project will be delivered with up to 90 per cent less waste than traditional building methods, making it one of the most efficient and sustainable options in the marketplace. 

The visit gave the group a deeper understanding of a live construction site and the job roles that could be available to them once they complete their studies.

Darwin Group business development director Tom Mason, who helped lead the tour, said: “At Darwin Group, we’re keen to help support the communities we work within, which is why we jumped at the chance to host this group of Bradford College students.

“They are the construction workforce of the future, and it was a privilege to show them around the site to give them an idea of the kind of things they will be doing once they’ve finished college.”

Adam Brough, Team Leader for Building Services Engineering in Construction and Engineering at Bradford College, said: “Here at Bradford College we are all about employer engagement to ensure students aren’t just taught in the classroom but are prepared for their future careers by taking part in real-life industry experiences. It is important that our students get meaningful opportunities to learn from industry experts, such as Darwin Group, who can provide our students with insight and knowledge to set them apart from their peers.

“This was a valuable experience for our students and a huge thank you goes to Darwin Group for actively supporting the transformation of Bradford College students lives.”

Costing almost £19m and built using innovative offsite modular construction methods, the day case unit will help tackle and reduce the local backlog of patients waiting for surgery. 

The day case unit will be separate from Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s main acute site at Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI) and will solely deliver planned surgery. This means it will provide additional resilience to the NHS in Bradford and help future-proof services for local patients. 

Once operational, it will deliver up to 5,760 operations annually and free up capacity at BRI to enable an additional 1,200 planned and day case surgery operations annually. 

It will help tackle local health inequalities while promoting the best outcomes for patients and providing new employment opportunities for local people.