The learners " who are all studying on a Programme Led Apprenticeship (PLA) in construction " went to Witnesham Nursing Home situated about four miles north east of Ipswich this week.
They worked at the home for two days and in that time they completely revamped an exterior fence and painted and repaired a fire escape and door area.
(Earlier on this year, Otley also donated plants to the care home to help improve the appearance of the external garden area).
The co-ordinator of the course is 75-year-old lecturer Terry Sheldrake. He has worked at Otley for the last 12 years and said, “Part of the course is geared around our learners gaining real experience in the workplace, therefore we called the local care home and they were delighted we were able to help them out.”
“This particular course finishes in October but if any other small community projects need a few days assistance with rudimentary construction related maintenance issues, we will definitely have a look to see if this is something that we can support.”
Maintenance manager at Witnesham, Paul Ryan (who lives in Ipswich), added, “It was great that the students were able to help us out. It’s important that the community helps each other out and we are hopeful that Otley will be able to come back and help us out on other projects in the future.”
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