Chin up, chuck

No matter how bad things got at school there would always be the thought of some future excitement like a quarter of cola cubes, a trip to the cinema or if I was feeling the need for a real pick-me-up, Christmas presents. So with September upon us, back at work after our holidays, with the nights drawing in, the economy sliding into recession and the pressures of work starting to take their toll, perhaps it’s healthier to concentrate on the positives rather than the negatives.

While the housing and commercial sectors suffer, public sector work is still busy, with the healthcare, social housing and education sectors still providing lucrative work. As our feature on page 15 demonstrates, the Building Schools for the Future programme should keep contractors busy well in to the next decade, especially after Partnerships for Schools, the government delivery body for schools, launches its £5bn revamped national academies framework early next year, possibly doubling the number of contractors on its list.

Those facing redundancy can also take heart, many of your skills are transferable to other sectors, says Tim Cook, managing director of recruitment consultant Hays Construction (management, p30). And, of course, the Olympics will be a big recruiter between now and 2012. With a budget of £9.3bn, under half that of the Beijing games, it’s still going to drain a lot of resources and there are even fears it won’t leave enough skilled workers for other major projects such as the Thames Gateway and Crossrail.

If none of that helps lift your spirits and the back-at-school blues start to drag you down, remember that Christmas is only round the corner. Just think of all those lovely pressies!