University College Isle of Man’s construction students got a taste of the industry with a tour of a building site recently.

A group of 12 first-year plumbing students were taken around Dandara’s Reayrt Mie development in Ballasalla to learn more about working on a building site.

The tour started with properties in the first stages of construction, right through to seeing finished homes. Students learned about how large sites operate from a health and safety perspective and were able to see how their learning in the classroom relates to real practice in the industry.

Accompanied by their lecturers, the students looked at the plumbing setup inside the finished houses and the high-quality specification and finish. The students also met with Dandara’s team at the company’s head office in Douglas.

Plumbing lecturer Lee McGoldrick, who organised the tour, said: ‘A huge thank you to Dandara for inviting our students to visit the site.

‘At UCM we’re fortunate to have the opportunity to see some fantastic real-working environments, which provides our students with excellent hands-on learning, so it’s great for them to visit a live site such as Reayrt Mie to see how their learning is really coming to life.’

Ciaran Downey, housing director of Dandara, said the company was delighted to welcome students. He added: ‘We’re always keen to work with students to help expand their skills and get a taste of life in our industry.’