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.
The World Economic Forum reports that organisations which include DEI in their core business strategies improve performance, innovation and employee satisfaction. Aside from that, the fact that inclusiveness and equity are the ethical basis for society should be sufficient motivation for change. How we bring it about will require deep-rooted systemic re-wiring.
The context has shifted from pandemic disruption to a cost-of-living crisis, many of the structural barriers identified in 2021 persist
Blueprint for All’s Life Chances research offers a rare longitudinal perspective on the experiences of ethnically diverse and socio-economically disadvantaged young adults in the UK. Our initial 2021 survey, conducted in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, exposed acute financial and educational pressures which threatened to derail young people’s futures.
Four years later, the 2025 follow-up survey has been conducted with 500 people aged 18-30 from under-represented groups across the UK. It reveals that, although the context has shifted from pandemic disruption to a cost-of-living crisis, many of the structural barriers identified in 2021 persist.
Scepticism has hardened
In 2021, concerns about employers’ risk aversion – hiring only from elite universities or conventional backgrounds – was seen as a key factor undermining workforce diversity. Since then, scepticism has hardened.
Today, fewer than half (46%) see the job market as fair, and only 29% believe that their employer is committed to EDI. Most (58%) report seeing no effective interventions.
Across both surveys, young people expressed doubt that EDI is genuinely embedded in institutional practice. The language shifts from “risk-averse exclusion” (2021) to “tick-box superficiality” (2025), but the message remains clear: young people are unconvinced by the authenticity of inclusion efforts.
The latest survey also highlighted how reliance on loans, long working hours and unaffordable rent are undermining academic success, with 84% of respondents stating that finance is crucial to continuing their studies. This financial precarity persists beyond education, with 30% citing financial stress as their most consistent challenge. Women (62%) and black respondents (64%) were most likely to identify affordability as a concern. Job security, housing and discrimination amplify this insecurity.
Our studies demonstrate that wellbeing is not merely a private matter, but is deeply entwined with systemic inequalities in education, employment and community belonging
In 2021, 96% of young people reported barriers to entering a profession, citing lack of experience, the closure of trainee schemes and unliveable entry-level salaries. In 2025, these barriers remain, albeit in different guises.
Difficulty securing internships or work experience affected 42% of respondents, while 38% struggled to get their first job after education. Career advancement remains restricted, with women and ethnically diverse groups disproportionately affected.
Wellbeing was another concern. Fewer than half (47%) of respondents report improved mental health in the past five years, and only 46% feel safe and supported in their communities.
The shift from acute crisis to chronic erosion reflects how unresolved structural barriers fuel ongoing mental health challenges. Our studies demonstrate that wellbeing is not merely a private matter, but is deeply entwined with systemic inequalities in education, employment and community belonging.
Need for change
To translate these insights into meaningful action, we propose the following system-level reforms:
- Higher education: Expand non-repayable bursaries, simplify access to financial support, and embed inclusive, culturally responsive practices to support retention and belonging.
- Employment: Mandate paid internships, reform recruitment through equity-focused practices, and invest in mentoring and sponsorship schemes to dismantle barriers to access.
- Financial stability: Introduce affordable housing measures, income-contingent financial aid, and cost-of-living adjustments to reduce economic precarity among young adults.
- Wellbeing and mental health: Fund trauma-informed, culturally competent mental health services, and embed wellbeing into education, employment and recovery pathways for those not in employment or education (NEETs).
- Justice, equity, diversity and inclusion: Move from symbolic gestures to structural reform by embedding accountability, publishing workforce data and co-designing policies with young people.
These changes are not aspirational or “good for business”; they are essential for a fairer, more inclusive future society. Young people are not asking to be rescued. They are asking to be recognised, resourced and respected.
This generation is articulate, ambitious and deeply engaged. Investment in their potential is not a charitable gesture, it is a national imperative.
Sonia Watson is CEO at Blueprint for All
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