Ingleton Wood employee meets the Queen Thursday, 14th February 2019

Sam Boone, a junior building services engineer here at Ingleton Wood, has met the Queen following his involvement in a leading programme to create and inspire the next generation of Built Environment professionals.

As an ambassador for the engineering training programme, Class of Your Own’s Design Engineer Construct! (DEC!), Sam was one of a handful of young people picked to meet the Monarch at the event that was part of the 150th anniversary celebration of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, held in London.

DEC! is an initiative that sees school students partnered with firms such as Ingleton Wood to enable them to discover from an early age the vast array of roles within the construction industry.

Ingleton Wood partnered with Sam’s school, Clacton Coastal Academy, a year ago and as a result of the relationship, they offered the 19-year-old a job.

Now based in the Colchester office, Sam, who met the Queen towards the end of last year, said: “It was a tremendous privilege to meet her and be able to provide a small insight into what the DEC! programme involves. I feel very fortunate to have had this opportunity and I came away even more inspired and motivated to progress my own career and skills.”

Laura Mansel-Thomas, Partner for Building Services at Ingleton Wood, who co-ordinates the DEC! scheme here, said: “Meeting the Queen is such a thrilling start to Sam’s career.”

She said: “The partnership between the school and our industry means we get the chance to nurture home-grown talent and see young people started on exciting careers.”

Students from the academy visit the firm twice a week for one or two years and work alongside the architects, surveyors and building services teams.

They learn about all aspects of the industry including planning, computer-aided design (CAD) and project management and as a result Sam was hired in September.