After nearly 20 years volunteering as a Construction Ambassador, Natalie Finnigan FCIOB explains the value she sees in engaging with students ahead of their entry into the workforce, and the impact that she sees from this work on the students themselves. 

As an industry professional, why did you first want to engage with schools and colleges?

I first wanted to engage with schools and colleges as I’ve always enjoyed the learning and development side of my role and wanted to give back something to the local community. 

I worked at a company that actively promoted STEM Ambassadors at the time as a way to fulfil their Social Value obligations and they directed me to the scheme and supported my initial engagement. That was almost 20 years ago now.

Can you tell us more about some of the activities you get involved in as a construction ambassador? 

Over the years I’ve participated in many activities including Breaking Stereotypes sessions, Construction Activity Days (where students get to plan a scheme, cost it up and market it amongst other things), ran fun measurement activities (measuring walls to the playground markings with measurement wheels, tapes and really long strides), K’NEX events, bridge building (and demolition) encouraging a design/cost consideration, as well as careers events and the occasional lecture on procurement, contracts or interview skills. 

What value do you get out of being a construction ambassador? 

When I first started as a new(ish) entrant to the construction industry it helped with confidence and presentation skills. Further into my career it helped raise my profile within the business and local community. 

Now it’s a nice change of pace from the normal day job and, through all stages of my career, it’s just felt good to be doing something positive for the wider industry and younger generation whether that’s inspiring them to consider a career in construction or helping them gain confidence in interviews to whatever career they hope for. 

Why is it important for industry professionals to be engaging school age children? 

Obviously inspiring people to consider construction is a good thing at any age but it’s so important to engage with students before they have firmed up their ideas of what career they want. I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I left A-levels and ended up going to university as a logical choice. 

I was lucky that my working life introduced me to construction and I was able to retrain as a Quantity Surveyor (QS). No one had ever talked to me about construction career options before university and, historically, people saw construction as a trade only profession. 

We need skilled trades people joining the industry but there are also many career opportunities on the professional side which we need to highlight as well as promoting the current reality of construction life, rather than the historical image of 30 years ago. The industry has moved on significantly during this time and the best people to change perceptions are those who know what the industry is actually like. 

Can you tell us a little about the STEM Learning platform and the benefits of signing up through this platform? 

Signing up through the platform gives you easy access to find opportunities to engage in your local area as it is where all the schools register their requests for support. 

It also allows you to put a little about yourself and the sort of activities you can support which allows you to be approached for specific activities, and it’s where you can easily log the activities you have completed during the year (whether you found them through the platform or independently). 

What advice would you give to someone considering taking on this role? 

Just to do it. It can be a lot of fun. There is a lot of flexibility about how you engage and how often and with what sort of events so, whatever your skills or experience, there will be an activity you can help with. 

There’s also a lot of support available with ideas for events etc, so you don’t have to design your own. Some young people only ever talk to adults they know within school or their family circle so even talking to them positively in a mock interview can make a huge impression on their future.

What has been the most rewarding moment from your time as an ambassador? 

In my last K’NEX event, there were morning winners and afternoon winners. The morning winners were two young ladies who thought they wouldn’t be any good at building things with Knex because it wasn’t something they had been encouraged to do as girls. 

In the afternoon the winners were two young men who engaged with the event, did the best presentation of the afternoon and obviously enjoyed the activity. What was special about these two students was that the teacher told me they were the most disruptive pupils in the class and she’d never seen them engage like that before. 

This isn’t a unique story as I’ve found over the years that similar moments have happened two or three times. At one event the teachers created a special award of Most Improved Student to recognise one young man who hadn’t positively engaged in school in a significant time. For some reason, the construction day event sparked his imagination and he was positive, communicative and driven - they saw a completely different side to him, and he saw what he could achieve if he tried. 

To be able to participate in these moments that could change the trajectory of a young person life is an honour and well worth the effort of volunteering some time to the STEM Ambassador scheme.