Leeds College of Building Make ‘Bug Hotels’ for Local Housing Development

Leeds College of Building (LCB) students and staff came together to create a series of ‘bug hotels’ that were donated to a local affordable housing scheme.T

he insect-shelter project was a collaboration between LCB and partners at Ashfield Group, with all the building supplies kindly donated by Travis Perkins.

The boxes, made from a variety of natural materials, will help to maintain a healthy ecosystem in outdoor spaces, helping important insect species to survive and thrive.

LCB is committed to providing students with hands-on experiences this these, through real-world projects whilst also supporting the wider community.

The ‘bug hotels’ will take up residence at Ashfield Group’s Wesley Road housing development which provides affordable and sustainable homes in the Armley area of Leeds.

Ashfield Group Technical Design & Marketing Manager Jules Morrell said:

“At Ashfield Group, we’re very mindful of social value, biodiversity, and our ecological impact and this felt like the perfect opportunity to bring all those principles together.

“By inviting the students to design and build the bug houses, they gained meaningful, practical experience and the wildlife at our Wesley Road project received some luxury accommodation!

“With the college being in close proximity to our site, our carbon footprint was also kept to a minimum. The students and tutors have all done a fantastic job and they really did us proud.”

Asked about how the project came about, LCB Construction Crafts Lecturer Matthew Cattle added:

“We were contacted by The Ashfield group and instantly knew this was something we wanted to be involved with. Our students took the lead researching and designing the bug hotels, and they all enjoyed the fact it was an opportunity to do something that was going to live outside LCB. It was a perfect final task for the academic year.”

LCB is the UK’s only specialist Further Education college dedicated to the Construction and Built Environment sector. The college works with over 800 employer partners, including NG Bailey, BAM Nuttall, Morgan Sindall, and JN Bentley.

The College was also recently named one of the first ever ‘construction technical excellence colleges’ (CTEC) and will receive a share of £100 million in government funding to tackle construction skills shortages.

Only 10 colleges across England have been given the status for the 2025 to 2026 academic year, with LCB selected to represent Yorkshire & the Humber region. Ministers say the CTECs will train 40,000 people by 2029 in high-demand trades such as bricklaying, carpentry, roofing and electrical work.