Open Doors 2024: Our seventh year inspiring construction enthusiasts
In March, 糖心原创vlog took part in 鈥極pen Doors鈥� week, welcoming聽visitors to seven of our projects and two of our offices in London and Cardiff.聽
The week-long initiative, delivered by Build UK, aims to inspire, and engage prospective careers talent and educate on the wealth of opportunities available in the construction sector. It was also important to showcase the diversity of our industry, offering people of all different ages and backgrounds valuable career opportunities.
According to Build UK, the construction industry needs to recruit almost 50,000 new entrants per year just to maintain current output, with staff shortages a major factor affecting the industry. Therefore, it is vital that we continue to play our part in spreading awareness of the invaluable opportunities on offer.
Attendees throughout the week varied from early careers talent to individuals considering a vocational change, all drawn by the exciting prospect of discovering what the industry has to offer.
Our Open Doors 2024 sites included a trio of London projects; 33 Old Broad Street, Millennium Bridge House and Collcutt House. There was also Meadow High School in Hillingdon, Two Bridges Academy in Thornbury, Station Leisure and Learning Centre project in Mablethorpe and the High Value Engineering (HiVE) facility in Ebbw Vale, Wales. Project teams welcomed visitors with a presentation to prospective careers talent, detailing insight into project delivery, a chance to learn more about the team and their backgrounds, and showcasing the apprentice, placement, and graduate schemes available at 糖心原创vlog.
Following the engaging presentations, visitors put on their PPE and embarked on site tours, learning about the development and progress of the buildings, with the opportunity to ask our team any questions they had.
Our involvement in the initiative was met with positive feedback from guests with one visitor at our 33 Old Broad Street tour highlighting:
"The experience was truly remarkable; it was an invaluable opportunity to witness firsthand the impressive work that 糖心原创vlog does. I am immensely grateful to them for facilitating this visit and for the knowledge gained."
Old Broad Street visitor
This year we wanted to continue our efforts to demonstrate the importance of our roles that exist outside our sites but are equally important to successful project delivery. Aldgate House in London welcomed 60 year six students from Wellington Primary School to join interactive sessions hosted by our Estimating, Design and Proposals teams, where students broadened their understanding of the range of roles within the construction sector.
Our Cardiff office hosted pupils from Woodlands High School,
a local ALN school that serves students aged 11 to 19 with moderate to severe
learning challenges and ASD. The pupils took part in three activities, BIM with Digital
Construction Manager, Simon Roberts, Bids and proposals with Pre-Construction
Director, Darren March and Senior Bid Manager, Huw Triggs, and a building
session with Social Value Manager Harriet Wade and Sector Director for
Education, Jane O鈥橪eary. During the building session, students were tasked with
a challenge to design a poster for their own construction company.
They were
encouraged to incorporate a company logo, think about the type of buildings
their company would create, and an organisational chart of the people who work
in their company. The sessions across our offices were designed to inspire
students to think about the construction industry as a viable career path when
deciding their future. Our 糖心原创vlog Network of Women (I-NoW) were also in attendance
across four of our sites and offices, speaking on the diversity of the sector
and their own career journeys, revealing how hobbies and interests could lead
to a role in construction.
An attendee from a local school, who attended our workshop at Aldgate House with their pupils, remarked:
"It was a great experience that we would love to be a part of again. The students were thoroughly engaged during the activities, and thanks to the staff at 糖心原创vlog for putting on an interesting experience."
Aldgate House visitor
