The Graduates

Skills shortage
And it is only now, when – according to the Construction Industry Training Board - more than 36,000 new construction managers will be needed by 2005 (there are just under 2000 graduates of construction management courses each year) that all parts of the industry have realised they need to pull together to avert disaster. The construction industry and government have announced a raft of new measures to combat the drastic construction skills shortage. Focusing on the recruitment and retention of graduates, but also including work in schools and colleges, the measures are a result of the Making Connections workshop that took place in January, attended by all the great and good of the industry. You may be tempted to think you have heard this all before. There has been a lot of talk but not much action in the area of skills shortages, but the chief executive of CITB, Peter Lobban, says this time is different. "The fact that both Nick Raynsford and Malcolm Wicks, the minister for life-long learning, were at the Making Connections seminar gives it real weight. It was also very encouraging that the groups focused on action and didn't just talk around the issue."

CIOB research
Real action has already been taken as a result of the workshop. CIOB research on how other professions such as law and accountancy turn non-cognate graduates into professionals, and examples of best practice in this area, are due to be published this month. There are also plans to make CPD mandatory, at about 40 hours per year, and the institute is looking to partner with universities to deliver ways of converting non-cognate graduates into members.

The Construction Industry Council is also looking into this area and is to propose a bid for a government grant of £20,000 to set up a framework for a graduate apprenticeships scheme for construction. This is a postgraduate course that would convert non-cognate graduates.

At the other end of the degree scale, the University of Central England has won the contract from the government to run the pilot foundation degree in property and construction. It will be a two-year part-time course, in partnership with local further education colleges Stourbridge and South Birmingham. Those who pass the course will have the option to gain an honours degree upon completion.

Ian Burton, a senior researcher at the UCE, was involved in putting the bid for the foundation degree together and is part of the steering group for the course. He is confident that it will help to address the skills shortage. "If you look at any research by the National Skills Council or the government, construction is massively under-performing, particularly in the West Midlands. A foundation degree is one way you can address this. Every employer in this area has problems finding staff." He adds that the foundation degree is a good way of encouraging people who are traditionally put off by higher education into gaining qualifications. "People who may have been out in the work place for a few years may be turned off by the idea of university. Being more work-based, foundation degrees will bring those people in." Unlike higher national diplomas (HNDs) and higher national certificates (HNCs), foundation degrees emphasise work-based learning and are not specifically aimed at school and college leavers.

Although they are open to all students, day release or sandwich courses are most popular within the construction industry. Companies are expected to play a big role in foundation degrees, both through financial assistance and by allowing employees time off to study. Bryant Group and A&H Construction have agreed to offer support to UCE's course.

Lack of communication
The lack of communication between industry, higher education and the professional institutions was also highlighted as a problem area at the workshop. To address this, the CIC has set up a working group of industry and university representatives to discuss what the industry requires from higher education. A working group of industry representatives and professional institutions has also been founded to draw up a list of their requirements from universities.

Other ideas to come out of the conference included a "construction honey pot". It has been recognised that undergraduates require more support from employers throughout their education, and the honey pot responds to this need. It will probably take the form of a website where construction companies can post their offers of sponsorship for students, who can then apply for funding online. The Construction Confederation is considering setting this up.

The need to address the lack of enthusiasm towards construction on the part of careers advisers and teachers was also recognised. The CITB already has a network of 121 curriculum centres and 13 regional construction career groups carrying out this work, but workshop participants determined that it should be further developed and resourced, and tied into the National Curriculum.

It was also suggested that time spent by staff working with careers groups to encourage more people to enter the construction industry should be considered CPD time by the professional institutions.

The CIC and CITB will submit a progress report on behalf of the workshop to the DETR and the department for education and employment in June.

The government is also looking for a demonstration project in higher education that uses the principles of Rethinking Construction, and is to introduce construction craft skills onto the national curriculum. Children will have the opportunity to learn skills such as plumbing to GCSE level from September 2002, with the option of taking on an apprenticeship at 16.