Suffolk Highways: Opening new routes into employment

Jacob stands with members of the Suffolk Highways team. 

Keeping Suffolk’s roads safe, maintained and moving is the day-to-day job of Suffolk Highways. But alongside delivering essential highways infrastructure services across the county, the team is also committed to creating opportunities for local people, helping them gain skills, experience and routes into employment.

One recent example was their depot visit for young learners, delivered in partnership with Inspire. 16 local young people – including several not currently in education, employment or training – were given the chance to visit the depot and learn about the roles and opportunities they offer, as well as the various pathways into employment within the industry.

This was a hands-on learning experience, which included a tour of the depot, a chance to speak with various employees and get a real flavour of the kinds of roles Suffolk Highways offers. While the visits are valuable learning experiences in their own right, attendees are also encouraged to explore further opportunities, such as applying for work experience placements, jobs and apprenticeships.

One young person who took that next step was Jacob. After attending a depot visit with Inspire in February 2026, he expressed an interest in learning more about working in the industry. Suffolk Highways agreed to offer him an extended work experience placement, giving him the chance to spend three weeks with the team learning about the business and getting an in-depth crash course in the role of Permitter.

Adam Mitchell, Social Value Manager for Suffolk Highways, explained: “When we were planning Jacob’s placement, we had a vacancy available for the Permitter role. This presented us with a fantastic opportunity to shape his time with us around the vacancy, giving Jacob the opportunity to develop some relevant knowledge and put him in a strong position to apply for the role at the end of his placement.

“It was important to manage Jacob’s expectations to avoid disappointment, as it’s unusual for work experience to lead to a job offer! However, Jacob exceeded our expectations and thrived over the three weeks. We were delighted to offer him a full-time role shortly before he finished his placement.”

It’s a fantastic example of how an initial intervention can lead to longer term relationships, future opportunities and, in some cases, paid work. Jacob has now started in his role and explained what the opportunity has meant for him: “Coming in for a depot visit was a great way to see what working for Suffolk Highways was all about. I really liked meeting the people and seeing the office and was interested to learn more, so I was pleased when they offered me the opportunity to come back and do some work experience.

The work experience placement gave me a chance to gain some hands-on experience. My manager Kate was great and let me get on, learn by doing and trusted me, which helped my confidence.

I’ve not had much luck with interviews in the past so when they offered me the job, I was really happy. Throughout the journey everyone was supportive and helped make the process simple, and I’m grateful to everybody at Inspire and Suffolk Highways for helping me find my first job.”

Inspire Suffolk depot visit

We also spoke to the team at Inspire Suffolk about their role in the partnership. They told us: “Building strong relationships with local employers is such an important part of our employability work at Inspire. Our ongoing partnership with Suffolk Highways has given young people across our programmes the chance to visit the team, hear directly from people working in the industry and get a much better understanding of the different careers and routes available to them.

“Those visits and conversations can make a real difference, particularly for young people who might not know what they want to do next or haven’t had the opportunity to experience a workplace like this before. Jacob’s journey is a brilliant example of what can happen when an employer is willing to give a young person the chance to explore an opportunity, build their confidence and show what they can do.

“We’re really grateful to Suffolk Highways for the time and support they continue to give our young people, and it’s fantastic to see that relationship lead to a young person starting their first job.”

Jacob’s journey shows the value of creating meaningful placements for young people. When people are given a chance to see industries first-hand and explore different career pathways, it can transform their own approach to work and present opportunities that they didn’t know were possible.

For Suffolk Highways, it is also an example of how investing in local talent can help address workforce needs while creating positive outcomes for the wider community. Through partnerships with organisations such as Inspire, they are helping to open doors for local people and showcase the wide range of careers available within the highways sector.