DEI is under threat – we urgently need systemic change

By Sonia Watson 2025-10-15T06:00:00

Five years on from our last survey, new research shows young people remain sceptical about a career in construction. Here’s how we take meaningful action, says Sonia Watson

This is Black History Month and it marks a decade since Blueprint for All launched its Building Futures programme to improve access to careers in the built environment for young people from under-represented backgrounds. In that time, as a national inclusion charity, we have championed diversity, driven change and broken down barriers for hundreds of people across a wide range of professionals sectors. But inequality remains entrenched.

Against a backdrop of businesses cutting jobs at the fastest pace in four years and the Trump administration’s anti-DEI agenda changing the narrative for many employers, it can be difficult for individuals to put their head above the parapet and champion the underrepresented.

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