A TEENAGE girl from Blackpool, who has chosen to follow her father into the world of painting and decorating, is supporting a campaign to encourage school leavers to choose a career in the construction industry.

School students received 'A' level results last week and GCSE results were out today (Thursday, August 23).To coincide with this the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has launched a major recruitment drive, including poster advertisements, in Blackpool.

The campaign aims to tap into young people's interests by showing construction workers as "young heroes", doing an exciting and interesting job and having a good time.

The adverts are located on poster sites near Blackpool & Fylde College, which is offering a range of construction-related qualifications.

Sixteen-year-old Hannah Maund, employed by BTS Decorators, Blackpool, and studying at Blackpool & The Fylde College, said: "Painting and decorating is something that I have always wanted to do since I was young. My dad is a painter and decorator and I used to love helping him."

Hannah has found the on-site experience arranged by her college to be of great benefit and she would strongly recommend being trained while an apprentice.

She explained "Things that I would have missed out on by just learning on-site I get to cover at college, and vice versa."

CITB's Jerry Lloyd explains: "The new poster site campaign shows some of the benefits that the construction industry brings. Few industries are better suited to meet the needs and aspirations of young people, with jobs available at the professional and management level as well as the skilled worker level.

"With over 60 different careers to choose from there is plenty of variety in an industry where you can really make things happen. It's a great feeling to look at something real and say, 'I built that'".

The posters also feature a new freephone number (0800 100 00 55) that has been set up so that young people can find out more about opportunities in their area's construction industry.