You and me both

‘We’re long past the days when the business world thought charities were struggling little things,’ says Elaine Radford, head of corporate social responsible at law firm DLA Piper. ‘Some still are but The Prince’s Trust is very well organised and works in a very structured way.’

Like all of the companies that are involved in its Get Into Construction training programme, DLA Piper has found that supporting The Trust is far from a one-way street. Certainly all the companies that have got involved say they’ve got more from it than just the warm glow that comes from supporting a good cause. The unique selling point of The Trust’s Get Into Construction programme is that it was set up with the express intention of solving the industry’s biggest headache - the desperate need for skills. But those involved have found wider benefits have included building relationships with clients, winning work, motivating staff and enhancing their reputations.

DLA Piper is a patron of The Prince’s Trust, donating £25,000 a year. It has been involved with the charity for a decade, offering pro bono legal work and business advice to the young entrepreneurs The Trust supports through its other schemes. Since the idea of Get Into Construction first occurred two years ago, the firm has used its network of relationships in the industry to encourage members to join the leadership group and help shape the programme. ‘It’s a virtuous circle almost, which is why it has been so amazingly successful,’ says Radford. To date, The Trust has run 27 courses to prepare disadvantaged young people to work in construction, and 75% have moved on to start careers in the industry.

Over the last two years, members of the Construction and Business Services Leadership Group have been helping to develop every aspect of the programme from scratch, enjoying a freedom and responsiveness that’s been notably lacking in other training initiatives for the industry. ‘We talk about what’s relevant so they can tailor the programme,’ explains Andrew Heath-Richardson, project executive at the Canary Wharf Group, another member of the group. ‘You can feel you’re making a difference, your comments mean something. It’s not death by committee; things actually seem to change.’

For Canary Wharf Group, Get Into Construction filled a gap in its own business. Heath-Richardson says the company knew it needed to do something to increase the supply of skilled workers but had found the 4 4 administration of an in-house apprenticeship scheme too much of a burden. ‘We wanted to support something that actually had a structure so it becomes easier to administer. Any training scheme can take a long time to develop – by the time you’ve got the scheme up and running, you’re in a trough again and there’s no work; by the time you peak again, you’re too busy. By signing up to this you buy into an established scheme and people benefit immediately.’

Scheme meets corporate goals

Many of the leadership group companies say they got involved because the scheme coincided with their own corporate goals. ‘It was quite obvious straight away that this gave us a good opportunity to contribute to improving the lives of young people. What The Trust was planning was what we were looking to achieve so we dived straight in,’ says Tim Sharp, director of corporate communications at Balfour Beatty, and a member of the business development committee for Get Into Construction.

Mike Peasland, Balfour Beatty’s group managing director is also on the main steering committee, chaired by Philip Rogerson of Carillion. ‘It gives us a new source of skills and expertise,’ he says. ‘Clearly there is a terrific demand for people to work in the industry, and the traditional sources of employees are used up. There’s more than enough work; what there is a shortage of is people.’

Sharp says working with The Trust has also been of a personal benefit. ‘The capacity to reach these young people who have problems is very rewarding. When you meet people who’ve been through the course and are starting jobs, it gives them an income, self-respect and a sense of pride.’

So far, Balfour Beatty has been helping to establish the scheme but now it’s up and running, Sharp says the next step is to find opportunities for its graduates on Balfour Beatty projects and with its suppliers. He’s also in discussions about leading a Get Into Construction programme in Scotland.

But it’s not just the big contractors that can contribute to The Trust’s work. Rydon Construction is a £190m turnover business based in the South, and its group marketing director Peter Robertson has been on the leadership group for about two years. ‘What appealed in particular was that we’d experienced a relatively high failure rate in identifying young people to work on our own construction projects. The Get Into Construction course identified those candidates who have the right aptitude, and the training assists them in preparing for employment. If we provide opportunities to people who have come through that programme, the chances are they will remain in employment, and that’s successful for the sector.’

Unlike The Trust’s larger supporters like Carillion and Balfour Beatty, Rydon doesn’t have opportunities for the course’s graduates across the country. But it has been working with its partners to make the most of the opportunities it has, linking training programmes to specific projects to provide a ready supply of labour and long-term opportunities.

There are two regeneration projects it is looking at, one in Sutton and one on the Packington Estate in Islington, with Hyde Housing Group, which could last up to eight years. Robertson hopes the plan will come to fruition later in the year. ‘This is not a charitable initiative,’ he adds. ‘There is a real business benefit to it.’

Knock-on benefits

There have also been less obvious, but no less valuable, knock-on benefits. Radford says DLA Piper has found its work with The Trust has strengthened relationships with clients, and potential clients. ‘We’ve been able to develop relationships in a new and dynamic way, and work more closely with the industry as a direct consequence of this initiative. It’s given us a real opportunity to enhance those relationships.’

For the first two-week course in June 2006, there was a 100% success rate and DLA Piper decided to celebrate it by holding a ceremony at their offices. ‘We invited clients and construction firms from around the industry, and we got some very senior people coming along.’

Radford has also enjoyed the wider networking opportunities that being a patron of The Trust offers. It holds a number of events throughout the year, which are very well attended. At its Celebrate Success event in London in March, superstars Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Spacey and other celebratory ambassadors were among the guests. Radford recently enjoyed a technology event where Bill Gates was the speaker. ‘It does give you access to some remarkable people and some very interesting events,’ he says.

Of course, working with such a prestigious and proactive charity does help to give some meat to your corporate social responsibility strategy - something companies are finding an increasingly important differentiator. ‘We talk constantly and with great passion about our commitment to giving something back, and this really excels from that perspective,’ says Radford. ‘There aren’t many instances where you can have that strength of identification around something of this nature. We hope in five years’ time we’ll be looking at really significant numbers of people.’