Germans teach Croydon construction apprentices to build low carbon homes

German experts in the field taught Joel Alcindor, 23, from New Addington, and James Daplyn, 20, who lives in Shirley, how to build greener houses.

They gained hands-on experience at a German centre of expertise in sustainable construction, the Ausbildungs-zetrum-Bau in Hamburg.

Mr Alcindor said: “The highlight was seeing how they do things differently in Germany, particularly in the way they insulate buildings.

“We saw demonstrations of the use of materials such as straw and seaweed for insulation. It was a real eye-opener.”

The study trip was organised through Stephenson College in Leicestershire where construction company Lovell National has its apprentice academy based.

The visit was funded by the Leonardo Programme, which supports European education and training initiatives by UK organisations.

The 10-day course focused on techniques for adapting existing homes to improve energy-efficiency and looking at different types of thermal insulation for a home’s foundation slab structure, exterior walls, roof space and windows.

The course also included a demonstration of how a traditional building’s carbon footprint can be reduced to virtually zero through the use of advanced insulation.

The course combined theoretical sessions with practical, hands-on work. Stephenson College assessor Steve Winfield-Hunt said: “We all learned a huge amount and it provided students with some tremendous practical insights into the German approach to building sustainable homes.”

Lovell national people development manager Bruce Boughton said: “Our Craft Academy national apprentice training programme at Stephenson College is dedicated to offering our apprentices the very best training opportunities. The Hamburg trip was a fabulous experience for our apprentices and gave them an amazing opportunity to learn about advanced European approaches to sustainable construction.”

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