Robert Spencer, Gate Keeper with GRAHAM Construction

“I received Health and Safety training when I first started working with Graham’s Construction. This really helped me to get to know the different members of the team and allowed me to settle into my new job.”

The main duty I have as a Gate Keeper is to ticket every lorry delivering goods to the site. This means that I have to take the details of the load and make sure that the order is correct; the items and quantities have to be exact. I am also responsible for opening the gates for staff members and visitors coming on site for meetings.

In my free time I like to relax by going to different festivals around the UK. I have a keen interest in both old and new music, and festivals offer a great environment to experience different types of alternative music.

I get a lot of job satisfaction from talking to new people each day; however it can become rather tiresome standing in the same spot.

I have managed to become friendly with a number of our regular drivers already, which is great, as I am not originally from this area and it can be difficult to get to know new people. 

I recently moved here from Jersey, so that I would be closer to my mother. I will probably move back there in a few years’ time, however I am a roofer by trade and if a job in that sector were to come up here, I would be motivated to stay here longer.

The only real challenge I have faced since moving here has been adapting to the cold weather. It took me a few weeks to get used to the wind and rain, as I am working out on site most of the time, but it is getting easier now.

I didn’t actually use the DGTAP service directly, although one of their partner agencies, Universal Jobmatch, helped to support me into employment. They called me every month to update my CV and suggested available jobs which suited my abilities and previous experience. This is how I managed to secure my current job with GRAHAM Construction