Local lowdown

The M3/M4 corridor may have its roots in greater London, but it is far enough out of the Smoke to avoid the crowds, while being close enough for convenience. Perhaps this is why so many businesses are relocating to the area, but whatever the reason, it is good news for the construction industry.

"Many large head offices, such as WorldCom, have relocated into our area and this has created a domino effect where we see first businesses then employees relocate," says Vicki Ball of Hays Montrose Reading. "Both cases lead to the building of more offices and homes, which creates jobs at all levels of construction."

Large developments have included Green Park, improvements to Thames Valley Business Park, the Forbury office development and the Oracle shopping centre. The Reading office has also filled some more unusual site engineer and site management projects lately, such as sewage works, a marina and pontoon developments.

Further south, the town centre redevelopment in Basingstoke – with its supported housing schemes in Basingstoke, Fleet and Andover, along with the revamping of Farnborough airport – have created employment opportunities for employees at all levels.

Keith Winter of Hays Montrose Basingstoke is excited about the next 12 months, which are expected to bring further increases in office workload. "The town-centre redevelopment is encouraging more companies to relocate and together with the fact that Basingstoke offers more affordable housing than other nearby towns, the recruitment needs of the area can only rise," he says.

Although regional construction is booming, of concern for the future is the need for local companies to encourage young people to enter the industry so that the number of skilled applicants does not shrink. The biggest recruitment skills shortages at present are for intermediate site engineers, quantity surveyors, architectural technicians and civil and structural engineers. By contrast, the market is currently flooded with facilities managers and space planners. In Basingstoke there is a specific shortage of QSs at all levels, along with housing officers, assistants and managers.

Hays Montrose Reading has several QS roles, including an intermediate to senior role in a national practice. This job is based in the firm's Berkshire office and the work is mainly in the residential and leisure sectors. The package includes a salary of £30,000-35,000, a company car/allowance and benefits package.

The Reading office also has several QS vacancies in a management consultancy, based in Berkshire, working on a mix of projects, as well as a large number of architectural technician roles on commercial and housing projects. The office is also looking for chartered civil and structural engineers for several Berkshire and Oxfordshire-based consultants.

In general, although salaries are still slightly lower than in London, they have increased in line with inflation to become very competitive – and perks such as gym membership and flexi-working are increasingly in evidence.