Interest in bricklaying courses in London may be set to rise after a contract was agreed for a new prison to be built in the capital.

The facility - which will be called Belmarsh West and will be situated next to the existing Belmarsh prisons - is worth £415 million to outsourcing company Serco, which landed the job.

Workers in the London area may opt to sign up for bricklaying courses soon, as the firm revealed that it intends to start building right away, with its Swedish construction partner Skanska set to be involved.

"Construction works will begin immediately, with completion expected in the first half of 2010. Equity and debt finance has been secured from third parties," announced Serco.

The firm recently received 23 awards for its outstanding safety performance from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.

These included the top accolades in two sections - transport, and research and development.

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