At least Budget April 2009, is good news for the building industry – and employment opportunities!
Whilst it’s true that some domestic construction new builds have slowed down or been cut back as a result of the ongoing economic turndown, the industry as a whole has been resilient. Recruiting for trained construction workers for large-scale projects such as the London Olympics 2012 and the Crossrail projects continues unaffected as the forecast demand for trained, skilled men has been seen to dramatically increase almost daily!
So it’s added good news indeed to hear that the UK’s house builders have been given a £500 million boost in the April 2009 Budget. Chancellor Alistair Darling announced a £500 million package which, he said, would help kick start stalled housebuilding projects and deliver thousands of new homes. Some £100 million will be made available to local authorities to build new energy efficient homes, action increasingly being implemented as an urgent response to both perceived climate change and significant financial savings that can be made by the homeowner. A further £50 million is also being made available to accelerate a programme to modernise accommodation for the UK’s armed forces.
It therefore follows that to take advantage of the obvious opportunities ahead means preparing oneself now. Training to become an electrician, gas installer, plumber, carpenter, bricklayer, tiler or plasterer in order to get on these or any of the many spin-off projects around London and South East England, seems to the right course of action, especially at this time. For a lot of people currently being layed off or put on part time working, retraining in the construction trades is a real and meaningful way forward.
It may even be that some are now reconsidering a career switch anyway, so either way, the time is right to seriously look into the options available. The first move is to check out courses – there are all sorts of ways to learn now, from introductory 2 day courses, intensive weekenders to longer 5 week or 10 week courses or longer. You can even ring up and ask to pop down and take a look at the training centre, ask questions and see for yourself what it would be like to be actually on your chosen course!
