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Northern Ireland Construction Careers Bootcamp

Last updated: 17th September 2021

The Northern Ireland Construction Careers Bootcamp was a virtual work-experience programme which aimed to inspire young people to follow a career path in the construction industry, whilst giving them an insight into the various roles in construction from a variety of construction companies. It was attended by 86 students from Years 11-13 from 12 schools, which were from a mixture of colleges and grammar schools. 13% of attendees were female.

It is increasingly difficult for young people to engage in work experience, as figures show that 24% of the UK population are continuing to work from home full-time and redundancies are at an all-time high. Limited people/resources in the usual working environment has prohibited companies from offering such opportunities in addition to following government guidelines on social distancing. This bootcamp aimed to give students the introduction to the industry that they might otherwise have received during a work-experience placement.

The programme was delivered virtually by Google Classroom on the Speakers for Schools platform over three school days. It was comprised of twelve one-hour sessions, incorporating presentations by seven key construction companies and five organisations: CIOB, ICE, Careers Service NI, Belfast Metropolitan College, and Workplus. Employer content was a mixture of presentations, films, virtual tours, activities and student interactions, with 10 exploration online activities for the students to undertake following the bootcamp.

CIOB was represented by two Irish staff members: Niamh Webbley-O’Gorman, Regional Manager – Ireland, and Jenna Bell, Business Development Manager – Ireland. Niamh and Jenna were thrilled to have been asked to open the event on the first morning and introduced the students to CIOB itself and the concept of a professional body in general.

Jenna opened the webinar with providing an introduction to the CIOB, who we are, what we offer, our benefits to individuals, Company members, Training Partnerships and who the CIOB can support students from the early grass roots of their careers in the world of construction.

Niamh highlighted some of the events the Ireland team run, which might capture the imaginations of teenagers. She spoke about Student Challenge Ireland and gave examples of the types of briefs that teams were set, for example, a city-centre building that needed to be renovated, with tram lines running outside and with a working restaurant in the basement. The students got an idea of the type of issues a construction manager deals with, which they may not have been aware of, e.g. community relations. They also got to see excerpts from the teams’ presentations: drawings, health & safety slides, project plans, etc. This showed the students some of the third-level engagement that CIOB does and gave them a taste of the varied role of a construction manager. Niamh also talked about Construction Manager of the Year Ireland and mentioned the 2017 winner, a Northern Ireland member who had overseen the refurbishment and extension of an active football stadium, which ran about 50 football games through the duration of the project, 12 of which were televised internationals. Students may not have been aware of the project management element of a built environment career and were intrigued by all of the elements that need to be managed on a successful project.

Finally, Jenna took the time to mention some of CIOB’s supports available to second-level teachers and guidance counsellors, e.g. the Minecraft lessons. Although the students on the call would be too advanced for these lessons, the guidance counsellors in attendance may have been interested to hear about ideas they can use to engage their students and introduce careers in the built environment.

Following the success of this event, Jenna and Niamh have been asked to speak again at a careers bootcamp in October 2021 and to take part in a new programme in 2022 called Inspiring Roles, where they will be joined by CIOB Trustee Noel McKee FCIOB and Joe Kilroy, Policy Manager Ireland. All of these activities support the aim of CIOB to promote construction as a career to second-level students and address the skills shortage in the medium term. CIOB Ireland is pleased to have been part of this successful event and look forward to working with the Speakers for Schools team going forward.