Construction? you must be joking

Amy is 13. Her favourite TV programme is The X Factor. She spends most evenings ensconced in her bedroom, posting photos and videos on Facebook, texting and chatting to mates on MSN Messenger. In between doing her homework, of course.

How can we convince Amy and the rest of the ‘iPod generation’ that a career in construction would inspire her? Unless she has a father, uncle or brother already working in construction, she is unlikely to consider it as a career. Stereotypes prevail: dirty, manual, poorly-paid and only for boys.

Things may be about to change. As part of its plans to keep children in education until they’re 18, the government is introducing five diplomas for 14-to18-year-olds: and construction is one of them. From September 2008 the Construction and Built Environment Diploma will feature alongside Creative and Media, IT, Engineering and Society, Health and Development as an alternative to the traditional GCSE and A-level route. Five more will go live in 2009 and a further four in 2010.

Setting aside for a moment whether it’s desirable to replace GCSEs and A-levels with diplomas, it seems likely that giving youngsters a taster of what it’s like to be a designer, contractor, facilities manager or estate agent will mean that more consider it as a career later on. Part of the diploma will include work experience with construction companies.

‘The idea is very much about providing a vehicle for learning in the context of the industry sector,’ says Nick Gooderson, head of standards and qualifications at ConstructionSkills who is involved in setting up the diploma. ‘They are about preparing youngsters to come into the construction and built environment industry.’

The diplomas are designed to offer youngsters a more dynamic option to classroom learning. Gooderson describes them as ‘the middle ground between GCSEs and the young apprentice programme’.

Chris Simpson, education liaison manager at Wates’ construction division, believes the diploma and work experience will help youngsters make informed choices about their future. Wates is trialling the work experience element of the diploma.

Simpson’s particular concern is the number of young people who go into apprenticeships and subsequently leave because they had no idea of what it would involve. ‘It’s a problem that affects the whole industry,’ he says. ‘By offering diplomas we can engage the young earlier to give them a more informed idea of what they’re getting into. We can help them sample different jobs and decide what suits them best.’

The diploma route should also prove beneficial to employers who complain that young people turn up for work without the necessary skills. Local employers are being asked to step forward to play their part in joining schools and colleges to deliver a mix of classroom, practical and on-the-job learning.

At foundation level the idea is that pupils will explore the nature and extent of the built environment, explore construction methods and techniques as well as the roles of individuals within the sector, and gain an introduction to the phases of the built environment life cycle.

The diploma is preparing youngsters to come into the construction and built environment industry

Nick Gooderson, ConstructionSkills

The hope is that 16-year-olds who would have previously looked to leave education will be swayed towards apprenticeships, while those looking at university might consider built environment degrees.

Some see the diploma’s ‘middle ground’ position as more of a second class option.

The suggestion is that by introducing these diplomas, the government is creating a two-tier education system with the brightest pupils in the best schools continuing to sit GCSEs and A-levels. Some universities have yet to be convinced that diplomas will be a credible alternative to the traditional qualifications.

And if diplomas are the ‘middle ground’ between the academic GCSE/A-level route and apprenticeships, this could send out a negative message about the sort of people the industry wants to attract. On the other hand, how many successful people reading this weren’t turned on by school, but are now successful construction professionals?

The work experience element of the diploma undoubtedly offers some challenges. This was the area that CM’s editorial advisory board thought could be most problematic when they were asked to comment on the diploma. Inviting a 14-year-old onto a construction site is fraught with risks, was the overriding thought.

Wates’ experience proves it can be done. Simpson organises work experience placements for 14 and 15-year-olds at four different sites as part of a BTEC qualification in construction and Wates is trialling the scheme in partnership with Croydon College with a view to offering diploma work experience placements next year.

Wates began offering work experience placements in 2006 and 24 students joined in the first year, 30 joined in 2007 and when the diploma course begins in September 2008, a total of 80 students will be visiting its sites.

Simpson says offering placements is good for site management teams because the students ask interesting questions that often help give a fresh perspective on working methods. And it means Wates gets the pick of the bunch when it comes to recruitment. ‘Over the three years as a partner we can assess the students’ performance, select the ones we want to take on and help the underperforming ones to pull their socks up. We find they respond to our input much more positively than they might a parent or a teacher,’ he says.

Regarding safety problems associated with having youngsters on site, Simpson says the college gives students a solid grounding to make them aware of health and safety issues. Wates also sends its safety officers into college to speak to teachers and pupils. ‘The site team is also fully engaged and students aren’t allowed on site unescorted. Everything has to be worked out and structured well in advance so there’s no danger,’ he says.

One of Simpson’s major concerns about the diploma is the fact that at present work experience can only be carried out in blocks of 10 days: ‘We’d much rather change it to one day a week over several months as it’s difficult to make sure workers are available to supervise,’ says Simpson. ‘It could prove a particular problem for smaller contractors with less staff. At present the government seems to have a one-size-fits-all approach, but it should really be assessed case by case. Schools need to listen to contractors rather than dictate terms to them.’

We find that students respond to our input much more positively than they might a parent or a teacher

Chris Simpson, Wates

Ultimately, Simpson wants the education authorities to sit down with industry and discuss a more flexible approach: ‘It’s important to remember that industry doesn’t deliver education, but it will support education delivery. We want to partner, not be dictated to.’

The biggest question is whether youngsters like Amy will be tempted to choose the Construction and Built Environment Diploma rather than, say, the Creative and Media Diploma, which is also in the first batch.

There are some things in construction’s favour: tales of City bankers-turned-plumbers, impressive electricians’ salaries on T5 and the Olympics all serve to make people think that construction may not be such a bad option after all.

Far from the hot spot that is London, where Paul Cragg is heading up the Bolton consortium to deliver the diploma, there is more building work on than ever. It’s a brilliant advert for the industry, says Cragg, who works for Bolton college and on secondment to the local authority one day a week. He thinks that parents and children will be interested in the Construction and Built Environment Diploma if they are aware of the range of careers it encompasses. He is hoping for 100 children to sign up later this year.

‘We’ve been visiting careers events, talking to schools, head teachers and this year we’ll be looking at a sustained marketing campaign,’ says Cragg. That campaign will also involve construction firms offering site visits and going into schools.

The Construction and Built Environment Diploma seems to be a great idea, albeit that some details are yet to be ironed out. But, like existing schemes for attracting young people into careers in construction (see boxes), it does require support from industry.

One firm which has already signed up is G&J Seddon, which is part of the Bolton consortium. The company already has apprentices, pupils on work experience and graduate trainees because of its ethos of ‘putting something back into the industry’.

Training manager Roy Cavanagh explains why Seddon got involved early: ‘It’s something that is going to happen and we would rather be inside the circle than outside it,’ he says. ‘We are a major company and we think it’s going to have a positive impact. It will give people at 16, who are not sure where they want to go, an opportunity to find out whether they might be involved at manager level as a surveyor, construction manager or project manager.’

Let’s hope more companies follow Seddon’s example and sign up to help deliver the diploma. Otherwise, Amy and the iPod generation will be tempted elsewhere. cm