A major development milestone has been celebrated at St Joseph’s Glasswater Locks project in the heart of Birmingham’s Learning Quarter.
The “topping out” ceremony saw representatives from St Joseph (a Berkeley Group company), Birmingham City Council, West Midlands Development Corporation, Birmingham University and The Skills Centre come together to mark the completion of the first structural frames.
This project is seeing a three-acre brownfield site on the Digbeth Branch Canal transformed into a distinctive waterside neighbourhood, offering a mix of homes, amenities, shops and high-quality public space.
Upon completion, Glasswater Locks will feature 762 homes, as well as 20,000 square feet of commercial space set around the refurbished banks of the canal, podium gardens, biodiverse landscaping and a network of new pedestrian and cycle routes.
A local jobs and skills programme is under way at Glasswater Locks which involves St Joseph, The Skills Centre (a specialist training provider), Birmingham City Council and West Midlands Combined Authority working together to deliver high quality training and apprenticeship opportunities, as well as work experience and pre-employment training.
The alliance between St Joseph, Birmingham City Council, MPB Contracts and The Skills Centre, has already supported 122 people with accredited training and 51 local people into paid employment. There will be many more opportunities for Birmingham residents to come.
St Joseph is also supporting a number of local charity partnerships, including youth engagement programmes led by St Basils, My BnK and The Change Foundation.
Piers Clanford, chairman of St Joseph, said: “I am proud of the employment and skills achievement, which to date has supported 122 people with accredited training and 51 local people into paid employment.
"Special thanks to our partners, The Skills Centre, Birmingham City Council, the West Midlands Combined Authority, MPRB Structures and our supply chain. The project is breathing new life into this brownfield site and this ceremony has marked another exciting milestone. We’re looking forward to seeing residents call Glasswater Locks their home from next year.”
