How Open Doors is rewriting construction’s careers story

With more than one million young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), Alan Millburn’s Young People and Work interim report released earlier this year highlighted a critical failure: “Too many young people now leave full-time education with little or no direct exposure to working environments”.

Without even a cursory understanding of the world of work and the pathways to get there, young people face huge challenges in simply getting started.

Helping them to take that first step from the world of education into the world of work is where Open Doors has a key role to play.

Delivered by Build UK with the participation of organisations across the built environment sector, Open Doors gives thousands of young people every year that first taste of what it’s like to work in construction.

In 2026, more than 6,500 visitors attended 240 events across the UK, with 81% saying they were more likely to consider a career in construction after their visit.

The countdown to Open Doors 2027 is under way and we are making changes to inspire even more visitors

With the latest CITB Construction Workforce Outlook revealing that the industry needs to recruit an extra 41,200 workers a year, the countdown to Open Doors 2027 is under way and we are making changes to inspire even more visitors. A new, more flexible format will enable events to take place throughout next March, providing more opportunities for sites and workplaces to take part.

Attracting the support of key government departments and careers support services, Open Doors has a proven track record of recruiting the next generation, with the chance to go behind the scenes opening their eyes to the wide range of opportunities available in the industry.

Adam from Lincoln, who attended an event hosted by FeRFA, the Resin Flooring Association, in 2026, discovered a career he had previously never considered. Just one month after getting the opportunity to speak to industry professionals, he secured a role as a trainee surface preparation operative and will shortly begin studying towards his NVQ Level 2. 

Molly from Bellaghy in Northern Ireland attended an Open Doors event in 2025, where she developed an interest in quantity surveying through seeing the role in action.

Today, she is a higher level apprentice quantity surveyor and credits Open Doors for giving her her first step into the industry: “I got to talk to so many different people and realised quantity surveying was something that I really wanted to do. In the space of a year, I went from being a visitor to helping to run Open Doors events.”

In the space of a year, I went from being a visitor to helping to run Open Doors events

Molly McErlean

Aiysha from London was also a visitor to Open Doors in 2025 when she was studying at Loughborough University.

“Open Doors was one of the first moments I truly saw myself in the construction industry,” she explains. “As a young woman from a minority background aspiring to work in the built environment, visibility wasn’t just inspiring, it was transformative.”

As a young woman from a minority background aspiring to work in the built environment, visibility wasn’t just inspiring, it was transformative

Aiysha Alli

Since then, Aiysha has completed her architecture degree and made the most of her new contacts from her Open Doors visit. She has just joined Berkeley Group, St James as a technical graduate

These are just a few of the many success stories demonstrating that Open Doors works, and it is not just for sites. Increasingly, organisations are hosting events at their offices, manufacturing facilities, training centres and more. These events are often more interactive experiences, which can open inquisitive minds to a whole range of possibilities.

It’s also not just young people who get inspired. People of all ages who are looking for a career change or hoping to get back into employment after some time away have found that Open Doors opens their eyes to how their skills and experiences can be used in construction.

You can register events for Open Doors 2027 from 5 October and educational groups can register their interest ahead of visitor booking opening in January 2027. If you’ve not taken part before or would like to get more out of your involvement in 2027, get in touch with the Open Doors team by emailing them on info@opendoors.construction.

Tamsin Parkes is project manager for Open Doors, and Building is the Open Doors media partner