Amey award wins in the West Midlands

Amey has been recognised at the West Midlands ICE Awards 2018 for their innovative and sustainable approaches to education programmes in Birmingham and economic growth through the creation of a new highways scheme in Staffordshire.

The team working in Staffordshire won the West Midlands ICE Awards in the category Medium Project, for the work to create a gateway to a new housing, business and leisure development by realigning Branston Road and building a new canal bridge. The road now paves the way for a multi-million-pound investment in the site, which will include 2,500 house, 50-acre employment site, a primary and secondary school as well as community and recreational facilities.

Richard Harris, Account Director for Amey in Staffordshire, said: “This is another fantastic achievement for our highways team. I’m incredibly proud that we’ve been recognised for the work undertaken at Branston Locks in Staffordshire. This comes on the back of the CIHT West Midlands awards recognising the positive contribution this new scheme will have on the growth and wellbeing of its local communities, at their awards last week.”

Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet support member for highways and transport Helen Fisher said: “Our highways team – a highly successful county council and Amey partnership – does a tremendous job and its work is vital for Staffordshire’s connectivity and economic growth.

“The projects which have been recognised by the industry are all different but all involve complex design, intricate planning and close partnership working – with a range of organisations and with local communities.

“They ensure there is safe and suitable access to new and existing developments and have literally paved the way for future growth.”

The awards also saw Amey’s team in Birmingham receive a Highly-Commended Certificate for an initiative targeted at improving the life opportunities of students from underprivileged areas by increasing take up of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects, with a view to a career in engineering.

The initiative known as ‘Educating the Educators’ is a collaborative project between Amey, Highways England, local school Joseph Leckie Academy and three other service providers from the roads sector; Atkins, Interserve and WSP.  The project focuses on improving teaching staffs’ knowledge of industry and providing resources so they can embed real life engineering and careers advice into their curriculum.

Jenny Moten, Business Director for Amey in Birmingham, said: “Educating the Educators is a unique initiative that sees experts from Amey and other highways businesses come together to share their knowledge of engineering with education professionals, to empower and provide them with the tools to inspire their students to think of the varying careers available within this sector.

“By bringing our people and teaching professionals together to share knowledge and expertise, we can address the growing industry skills gap while providing opportunities for young people to develop their academic skills, raising their awareness of the careers available.”

Amey’s team in Birmingham recently were recognised at the West Midlands Celebrating Construction Awards for a programme of works to develop its people, whilst the Branston Lock highways scheme has been awarded for a number of regional accolades including the West Midlands CIHT awards and the prestigious West Midlands IHE awards.