Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
HS2: Creating skilled jobs for the future and uncovering Hillingdon’s past
BRITAIN’S new zero carbon, highspeed railway, High Speed Two (HS2) is Europe’s largest infrastructure project and currently supports over 27,000 jobs nationwide. The project will provide much-needed rail capacity across the country, help reduce Britain’s carbon emissions and create long-term employment for thousands.
HS2 Ltd, the team leading the design and construction of the railway, has appointed Skanska, Costain and STRABAG joint venture (SCS JV) to construct a 16-mile stretch of the route that includes around 5.5 miles running through Hillingdon.
SCS JV will employ 4,800 workers – including 400 apprentices – for this section of the railway. Align JV, HS2 Ltd’s other main works contractor working in Hillingdon, expects to recruit another 1,200 workers and over 100 apprentices. Both SCS JV and Align JV are focusing their recruitment on people who are currently unemployed, especially women, under 25s and people with disabilities.
HS2 is also helping to upskill Britain’s workforce, ensuring the project leaves a lasting legacy for generations to come. For example, SCS JV has partnered with Harrow and Uxbridge College to enhance courses for those studying BTEC Construction or T-Level Science. Students will have the opportunity to undertake a tailored programme of work experience on HS2 alongside their studies. They will be offered around 45 days of construction-focused work experience.
Ambrose Quashie, HS2’s Skills Manager for London said: “With two decades of construction work ahead of us on the project nationwide, and 34,000 jobs forecast, this partnership provides a meaningful pathway into employment, and I hope the students will feel inspired to progress into roles on HS2 when they finish their studies.”
To see all of HS2’s current opportunities and to apply, visit hs2.org.uk/careers
As well as creating jobs directly, HS2 is stimulating the local economy by partnering with small businesses. In Hillingdon, a local, family-run scaffolding business – Denham’s PHD Access – is already benefitting from working on the HS2 project.
D a n n y D w y e r, Ma n a g i n g Director at PHD Access said: “We really wanted to play our part in this momentous project and it’s fantastic that local businesses are being given the opportunity to get involved.”
Discovering Hillingdon
Ahead of constructing the new highspeed railway, the largest archaeology programme ever undertaken in the UK has been taking place along the line of HS2’s route. Many artefacts have been discovered in the Hillingdon area, such as prehistoric tools used by our ancestors. It is believed that they date from between the Mesolithic era and the Iron Age – from around 8,000 BC to AD 43.
Additionally, August 2020 saw the discovery of the ‘Hillingdon Hoard’. This is a collection of more than 300 Iron Age pontins (early coins). They are an extremely rare find and date back to the first century BC.
Meanwhile, archaeological works taking place on West Ruislip Golf Course over the last five years have revealed over 45,000 years of history. With much of the golf course publicly accessible throughout the construction of HS2, SCS JV has created a special map that helps local people discover the archaeology on their doorstep.
Pick up a free physical copy of the ‘Mapping West Ruislip’s past’ trail from outside SCS Railway’s Community Hub on Ickenham Road or download the digital map from hs2.org.uk/archaeology
Northolt Tunnel
Earlier this year, the West Ruislip HS2 site took delivery of two giant 1,900-tonne tunnel boring machines (TBMs), which will both be named by London schoolchildren. The two machines will each create the five-miles of the Northolt Tunnel which will pass underneath Hillingdon. They are the first of six TBMs that will excavate 13 miles of twin bored tun-nels underneath London where HS2 services will run.
Approximately 95% of the SCS JV section of the route will be in tunnel. Tunnelling will take place around the clock for two years, only stopping at Christmas and Easter.
During the tunnelling works, and across all other parts of the project, great efforts are underway to minimise the impact on nearby buildings and the environment.
HS2 is also responsible for large-scale tree planting and habitat creation projects along the railway. Between London and the West Midlands, seven million trees and shrubs will be planted.
Supporting Hillingdon
The project also promotes develop-ment in the communities it passes through. The HS2 Community and Environment Fund (CEF) and Business and Local Economy Fund (BLEF) offer £40 million combined to communities along the route, with nine projects in Hillingdon benefit-ting so far.
Of this, £74,000 was awarded to the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust, the largest heart and lungs specialist in the UK. The centre used the funds to help build Harefield Hospital’s Peace
Gardens. The ‘healing and peace’ gardens at the hospital enable patients, visitors and staff to relax and find moments of peace in times of stress and anxiety.
Thames21, a charity dedicated to the restoration of rivers, has also been awarded £66,000. This funding was allocated to decrease flood risk and increase biodiversity in the Ruislip area. The project will also promote events that encourage voluntary participation in the upkeep of the River Pinn and Cannon Brook.
To find more about how to apply for the CEF and BLEF funds, please visit hs2funds.org.uk
Stay informed about HS2
HS2 understands that its work will affect residents, which is why there are many ways for people to stay informed and have their voices heard. You can receive regular updates about the project – including notifications of upcoming works, how it’s being constructed and what is being done to make it less disruptive – by signing up at hs2.org.uk/hillingdon
Anyone with queries about the new railway can contact the HS2 Helpdesk all day, every day. Call 08081 434 434 or email: hs2enquiries@hs2.org.uk
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