Students digesting their A-level and GCSE results this summer are being encouraged to consider pursuing a career in construction by insulation specialist Actis
It’s an exciting time to consider a career in construction, Actis has said to young people getting their results this summer, with the industry about to embark on a massive housebuilding drive.
With the new government committing to delivering 1.5m new homes during the current parliament, the industry needs more people to work in areas such as architecture, planning, quantity surveying, land acquisition, infrastructure and legal work, as well as practical skills like bricklaying and carpentry.
The Skills England Bill announced last month is aimed at addressing a severe labour shortage in the construction industry and, along with the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, will pave the way towards creating the homes the government plans to deliver over the coming five years.
Training will be a key part of housing delivery
Actis UK and Ireland sales director Mark Cooper says a key element in achieving this aim is to ramp up training opportunities for young people within the construction industry.
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) says a quarter of a million new workers will be required between now and 2028 to achieve this target and the NHBC adds that current build volumes must more than double to hit the government’s goal.
The desire to work in construction is there, at least in younger childhood, according to a recent survey of 100,000 young people by the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC), which found that it is one of the preferred career paths for students by the time they reach 11 years old.
And the CITB has seen almost one million visits to its Go Construct website so far this year, with a third of users under 18 and 33% identifying as female, all of which shows enthusiasm which needs to be matched with opportunity.
A skills shortage means a wealth of opportunities for young people in construction
Actis is one of the many organisations within the industry encouraging more people to embrace a career in the sector through its school and college outreach initiatives.
Women in Construction ambassador and Actis northern regional sales director Jemma Harris has been involved in a CITB careers event and addressed students at a school in Yorkshire, with the aim of inspiring young women to follow a career in a male-dominated profession.
Northern regional specification manager Amaret Chahal, who has co-written some of Actis’ CPD training material, recently spoke to students at Barnsley College about the joy of construction.
And South-West area sales manager Tom Hendzel has helped out with lectures to construction trainees at Cornwall’s Truro and Penwith College.
The government’s pincer movement – of speeding up new homes delivery through its Planning and Infrastructure Bill and training more people to have the skills to enable this to happen – will also need to involve an increase in Modern Methods of Construction, explained Mark.
Creating more modular, offsite homes, which can be built up to 30% more quickly than traditional brick and block, will not only enable the homes to be delivered more quickly, but will also ensure a consistent quality and more effective thermal efficiency.
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