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With over £2bn of construction activity in and around Bristol, there is currently an unprecedented demand for quantity surveyors and project managers. For example, the Harbourside development is a £1bn mixed-use transformation for the city, incorporating both luxury apartments and commercial premises. The PFI Schools for the Future project is also key for Bristol, whereby four schools are being turned into academies with facilities for children with learning disabilities. The Bristol Arena, a 10,000-seat, multi-purpose indoor arena for music, sports, conferences and events, is due for completion in 2008.

The highest profile scheme, however, is the £500m redevelopment of Broadmead. Bristol is attempting to follow in the footsteps of Birmingham by regenerating the city with a new shopping centre. Upon its completion in 2008, Broadmead will give Bristol a chance to join the league as one of the top five shopping centres in the UK.

These schemes, coupled with further development in both public and private sectors around the area, have exacerbated the need for professional quantity surveyors. There is a particular shortage of chartered candidates because many graduates who leave university with high levels of debt choose to join higher paying contractors, as opposed to starting at PQS companies. This has led to a noticeable shortage of candidates with two to three years’ post-qualification experience. This skills shortage has affected employers across Bristol at all levels, from sole proprietors to large multi-nationals.

Indeed, employers in the area are always looking for good quality staff, and commercial experience is extremely important. They have also begun to recognise that the only way to achieve their recruitment targets it to invest more in their staff, provide greater training options and offer employees a varied workload.

Providing investment in the area continues, experienced quantity surveyors and project managers will remain in great demand

Duncan Evans, consultant at Hays Property & Surveying, says: “There simply aren’t enough qualified professionals to meet the level of demand, and we cannot see the situation changing unless more graduates are encouraged to enter the industry. It is positive that employers are now more open to employing PMs from a variety of backgrounds, such as civil engineering and building surveying as well as traditional quantity surveying.”

One of the main advantages for Bristol is that it enjoys a lower cost of living than London, which is reflected in slightly lower salary levels. A number of professionals are choosing to relocate from the capital and other cities, primarily for the better quality of life that Bristol offers.

Bristol certainly appears to stand for balance: it offers the opportunity to get involved in commercial and residential regeneration activity on a large scale, whilst also offering a high standard of living.

Evans adds: “It is an extremely attractive location and offers a vast number of high profile projects to work on. Providing investment in the area continues, experienced QSs and PMs will remain in great demand.”