Simon Yates knows how hard it is to build a house and he has the scar to prove it.
The St Paul’s Collegiate student was one of 11 who were part of a construction class that built a house for the school’s Tihoi Venture site.
Started in February, the completed three-bedroom house was removed from the school grounds and taken to Tihoi. The house will be used to accommodate additional students or visitors to the campus.
Tracing the scar on his right hand that he got during the house’s construction, Simon said it was a great feeling to see the house finished because it was a clear sign of their year’s work.
"Seeing it finally completed was pretty cool and I will always have a reminder – it was a bit of a learning curve and I just did the wrong thing."
The project was initiated by parents Gavin Jakes and Mark May.
Both men own construction companies and have several years' experience in the building industry. Their initial idea for implementing the project was to provide an alternative course for boys in their final year of school, with the view to providing a possible career pathway into the building industry.
The students have been given the opportunity to work on the project one day a week, with the class being split into two gangs and working on Tuesdays and Thursdays under the eagle eye of construction class teacher Heta Smith.
