On 2nd October, Shanly Homes and charity Learning to Work joined forces for a ‘Design, Plan, Build’ careers event to raise awareness of the diverse career opportunities that exist within the property development sector. The running costs of the event were provided by the Shanly Foundation, the charitable arm of Shanly Homes.
Sixty students, aged 13 to 14, heard first-hand from Shanly Homes employees across planning, technical and build, and took part in a speed networking workshop with people from a wide variety of roles within the business. The year 9 attendees were from Beechwood School, Herschel Grammar, Burnham Park Academy, Desborough School, Sandhurst School and Bishopshalt School.
Nancy Lalor, operations director at Learning to Work, comments: “Learning to Work is thrilled to have partnered with the Shanly Foundation for the ‘Design, Plan, Build’ event. Bringing careers to life and initiating interaction with professionals is key to helping young people explore the world of work and all it has to offer.
“To enable young people to make informed choices about their futures and understand the possibilities open to them from studying certain subjects at GCSE, there is no better way than bringing them face to face with potential employers to understand more about expectation, entry levels and day to day life in a professional environment.”
Students worked with the Shanly Homes employees, to gain an overview of the construction sector and the range of career paths open to them. Volunteers introduced students to their organisation, described their roles and discussed the skills and abilities they developed which helped them achieve their career goals. Details were also shared about the entry level requirements for roles within the industry.
David Howells, Shanly Homes’ planning manager, has said: “The day was a great success and we hope that the students will go home inspired by what they’ve seen and heard. I thoroughly enjoyed being involved in the planning section of the day and being a part of helping young students take the first steps on their property career ladder.”
“I came along today more or less fixated on a specific career path but spending the day with Shanly Homes has really made me consider careers I hadn’t previously thought about” said Maariya Khan, a student at Herschel Grammar, Slough. “There are far more jobs in construction than I had ever realised.  It was good to meet people from business to hear about opportunities they offer and to find out what different jobs involve. It was a really good day”
Tamra Booth, trustee at the Shanly Foundation, comments: “Working with young adults and educating them about the careers available to them in the property development industry is something that we are honoured to be a part of. We hope that the ‘Design, Plan, Build’ event has inspired them to consider a job in this sector.”
Learning to Work is a UK registered charity located in Slough, brokering a wide range of events in and out of school, supporting over 25,000 children in the local area. Their events include Enterprise Days, STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) events, Skills for Life, Maths Marathons, Junior Masterchef and more. Currently, the charity works with over 45 secondary and grammar schools across Berkshire and West London as well as colleges, local authorities and other agencies.