Research from the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) at University of Gloucestershire is giving young people in Ceredigion, western Wales, with practical experience of careers in the construction industry.
CCRI helped shape the Inspire to Build project, an initiative that highlights the wide range of opportunities across the built environment sector in the rural county to people aged 16 to 24.
We took part in the project as a member of the Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership, which funded Inspire to Build.
The Partnership connects academic researchers, public bodies, third and private sector organisations and communities, with the aim of enhancing the use of research and innovation to support effective policymaking, sustainable regional development and the wellbeing of people.
CCRI’s role in Inspire to Build
Wales’s construction sector has a significant labour shortage, needing an estimated 1,720 new workers per year.
The CCRI project team, Aimee Morse and Matt Reed, led an Innovation Lab which brought together construction sector stakeholders to co-design solutions to this problem.
Throughout the process, participants reflected on the current opportunities and challenges in the sector, envisioned the sector in 2050, and worked together to design solutions that could support progress towards this vision.
Inspire to Build was the result of these discussions, with proposed solutions refined by a steering group of sector experts from across Wales.
New opportunities for young people
Through Inspire to Build, the delivery of which was led by the University of Wales Trinity St David, 16 young people who may not previously have considered construction as a career, have accessed placements with local companies.
Opportunities include carpentry, bricklaying, electrical work and plastering, alongside architectural technology, construction management, quantity surveying, and digital construction.
Aimee Morse, Research Fellow with the CCRI, said:
“As a member of the Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership, we were pleased to share our knowledge and experience to support the delivery of Inspire to Build.
“We have a strong and vibrant research relationship with our partners in Wales and long experience providing expertise to policy and decision-makers in Wales.
“We’re delighted that Inspire to Build is now making a positive difference to young people within the construction industry.”
Main image: Young people learning new skills as part of the Inspire to Build project supported by the CCRI (credit Andrew Lewis/University of Wales Trinity St David).
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