Construction
What is it?
The construction industry includes activities associated with buildings and civil engineering works.
This can include the construction of places where people live, office buildings, stores and other public and utility buildings or the construction of civil engineering works such as roads, bridges, tunnels, railways, industrial facilities, energy supply, etc.
There are a variety of job roles within construction sector for design, new build, repair, additions and alterations, the creation and erection of prefabricated buildings (manufactured in parts elsewhere). Many construction careers are focused on green technologies and sustainability.
Opportunities exist to work for large companies, smaller businesses and yourself.
Take a walk through the variety of roles that the construction industry can offer:
Construction Occupations
Myth busting
“Construction is only for men.”
- over 320,000 women work in the construction in the UK. It is still a low percentage but increasing.
“It’s dirty and you work in the cold.”
- There is a wide variety of careers in construction which can involve working in locations including a construction site, an office, workshop or even working from home.
“It is a low skilled, low paid industry.”
- Over 80% of the occupations in the construction sector in the South East Midlands are either professional or skilled trade roles earning high salaries.
Prospects for the future
The construction sector is growing and there are jobs available for people with the right skills, training and attitudes.
The number of construction sector businesses based in the Central Bedfordshire increased by 330 from 2014 to 2018. 325 of these were micro businesses (less than 9 employees).
99% of the employers are small or micro businesses.
Business Size (Employees) - Proportion
In 2017, 40,000 people were employed in the construction sector in South East Midlands area. This number had increased by 4,000 between 2014 to 2017.
Examples of large construction businesses based in the South East Midlands:
Current occupation types with shortages of applicants:
Find out more about what career opportunities and earning potential the construction sector can provide at GoConstruct and Prospects.
The Construction Skills Network predicts that the construction sector will create and need people for 158,000 new jobs by 2022 in the UK, the jobs most in demand being:
Opportunities for work in the South East Midlands will include:
130,000 new homes planned in the decade to 2025/26
Improvement of the East-West transport links between Oxford and Cambridge across the South East Midlands for both road and rail
New college and university facilities
New building and offices for businesses including Enterprise Zones
New leisure facilities
Expansion of London-Luton Airport
What skills do I need?
Qualification on their own will not be sufficient to secure a job. Employers also look for:
Core competencies - communication, confidence, initiative, planning and organisational, problem solving, resilience, teamwork and basic IT literacy (spreadsheets, word processing)
Basic skills - maths and English
Key employability skills - those specific to a job, technical/practical skills and customer service
Experience - gain some work experience whilst in education, this may included volunteering
Have a look at Life Skills to help prepare you for making the first step into a career.
How do I get there?
There are many pathways into a career in construction including the traditional academic routes.
Local further and higher education providers and courses:
Apprenticeships - Apprenticeships combine practical training in a job with study. Find out more here. To search for and become an apprentice, start here.
Traineeship - Traineeships are designed help young people who want to get an apprenticeship or job but don’t yet have appropriate skills or experience. More information can be found here.
Higher Education
University of Bedfordshire
University of Northampton
The Open University
Useful websites and social media
GoConstruct: Explore GoConstruct, use the online tools to find careers in construction
Shaping Your World – Kier: An interactive site that allows you explore the construction industry
Prospects - Property and Construction: Information on jobs, work experience and pathways
Youth Employment: Careers in construction and pathways