Gateway for women in construction

Gateway Professional Training have delivered a scheme in London to support more women into a career in construction

Supporting women in construction

The construction industry is currently experiencing a shortfall in employees. The industry has long recognised the need to tackle outdated perceptions as it tries address this shortage. Attracting and retaining women is recognised by many as a central part of the strategy to recruit more workers. However, a recruitment survey by Keepmoat said that only 13 per cent of 1000 women surveyed would consider a career in construction.

Borough of Islington initiative

Working with the London Borough of Islington, Gateway worked with a cohort of 11 women to change perceptions and provide them with a foundation for a career in the industry. Over the course of a couple of weeks Gateway introduced the learners to various aspects of construction. One of the key objectives was to provide the attendees with a lifetime qualification related to construction and a Green CSCS card. The CSCS card would enable the candidates to access work placements on constructions sites, removing a barrier to career development.

Gateway Professional Training recognised that preparing for the qualification, taking the assessment and applying for the card was not the best use of valuable tutor and classroom time. Gateway were also conscious that the tight schedule of classroom time did not offer enough flexibility to cater for different learning styles and speeds between the students.

The role of online learning

To address these needs, Gateway partnered with The Digital College to handle the delivery of the qualification and the cards through an online platform. Candidates were able to access learning materials and exam preparation resources during their own time over a week. As a result Gateway were able to cater for different paces of learning while achieving a high pass mark (over 90% of candidates).

Leroy Joseph, Managing Director of Gateway Professional Training, said “The Digital College enabled us to deliver a qualification to our cohort with minimal classroom time, while helping us achieve a high pass rate among a mixed ability class. As a bonus they also took care of all the administration overhead of providing the CSCS cards to our learners.”