Basil Read

About Basil Read

Basil Read is a South African construction and mining services group with its head office in Boksburg, Gauteng. For many years it worked on roads, civil engineering, buildings, housing developments and surface mining contracts. It also took on work beyond South Africa, including the airport project on the island of St Helena. The company was listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and became a well-known name in the local building industry.

The group's fortunes changed after a large loss in the 2017 financial year. In June 2018, Basil Read Limited entered business rescue, and creditors approved a rescue plan in September of that year. Several group companies, including its mining and blasting businesses, have since been in separate rescue processes. The company website still states that business rescue is under way.

How Basil Read supported students

While the group was trading at full strength, it offered bursaries to students in the built environment. Published listings mention civil engineering, mining engineering, quantity surveying and building or construction qualifications. Bursaries were aimed at students from their second year of study onward.

The funding reportedly covered registration, tuition, prescribed books, stationery, accommodation and meals. In return, graduates were expected to work for the company for a period matching the length of the bursary. Many bursars also received guidance from the group's training managers while they studied at South African universities.

Basil Read also invested in training for its own workers, including a leadership and construction training academy. This shows that skills development was part of its identity, not only a side project.

What to know before applying

Please read this section carefully. Because the company has been in business rescue since 2018, it is not clear that it still runs an active bursary programme. We could not confirm any open call, deadline or intake for the coming year. Older bursary websites may still show outdated advertisements, so do not assume that funding is available.

If you still want to approach the company, use the contact details on the official Basil Read website and ask directly whether any bursary or training places exist. Never pay anyone who claims to offer a Basil Read bursary, and do not share your ID number or banking details with unknown websites.

In the meantime, widen your search. Other construction and engineering employers, state-owned companies, municipalities and the Construction Education and Training Authority all fund students in civil engineering, quantity surveying and related fields. Compare several offers and apply early so that one closed door does not delay your studies.

Keep copies of your results, ID and proof of registration ready, since most funders ask for the same documents.