Construct a Career partners with Wates
Construct a Career, an initiative offering a proactive and quick solution to the skills shortage facing the UK construction industry, is celebrating its first programme delivered in partnership with the Wates in Brent.
The scheme is a unique collaboration between training organisations, recruiters and employers which combine to create a seamless route to a career in construction at no cost to the trainee.
Wates currently has a number of live sites across Brent that will offer job opportunities for graduates of Construct a Career. This includes the construction of 150 new homes for Brent Council to offer independent living and temporary accommodation at Knowles House on Longstone Avenue, a 10 year housing management programme to improve the councils social housing stock and the construction of 732 new homes at Wembley Park, with another 633 under construction.
Brendan Smith, ONeill and Brennan, says:
“The results we have seen from our first series of events in 2019 have proven that the initiative works. We already have 113 candidates successfully placed in work and by partnering with Wates Group we can now offer more candidates a direct route to employment.”
The British construction industry is facing a major recruitment crisis with 168,500 workers needed in the next five years. The Construct a Career programme, combining pre-employment training and employment opportunities, took place in Brent from 20 – 31 January and offers a solution to this growing industry-wide issue.
Construct a Career offers candidates free training to ease access into the industry and ensure they are fit to work. By partnering with contractors and local councils, Construct a Career provides a solution to Section 106 obligations, placing local people in work while meeting the training requirements of their clients.
The Construct a Career initiative is the result of the collaboration between training organisation Cidori and construction recruitment specialist ONeill & Brennan.
Friday 31 January sees the 15 candidates complete their training in Brent, building on the national Construct a Career programme.
Su Pickerill Group Community Investment Manager, Wates Group, says:
“We have a big skills gap in the construction industry and we are really keen to become a more diverse and inclusive sector. This kind of programme brings an opportunity to raise awareness about the construction industry and the vast range opportunities in it. It also opens opportunities for people that may not have considered construction before.”
With candidates gaining an opportunity to sit their CSCS test and access a blend of face-to-face and online training, the scheme means that Construct a Career graduates will be certified to work on building sites across the UK. This will include access to hundreds of registered vacancies on local contracts and further afield.
