Q: Could you tell us about BuildForce?
Angela Forbes: BuildForce supports those leaving military service and veterans – anyone who has served in the British armed forces at some point in their life – to transition into a long-term career in construction.
We provide training and upskilling opportunities, and access to the industry through placements, mentors, site visits, career chats and job opportunities. This is all underpinned by support for their mental health and well-being, both during and after the transition.
The organisation was formed in 2011 when it launched a pilot programme to test the industry’s appetite for recruiting service leavers and veterans, which was funded by the Construction Industry Training Board and involved six major construction organisations.
A decade later, construction employers, institutions and charities across the UK – including RICS – have pledged their support through the BuildForce Alliance, while there are hundreds of mentors and even more service leavers and veterans in long-term careers in construction.
Diversity is vital to what we do: in the last financial year, 15.1% of our candidates identified as BAME and 9.1% were women. We need to do more to support this exceptional talent coming from the military community. We see inclusivity as the key agenda for all employers now.
Q: What are the benefits of companies and individuals working with BuildForce?
AF: Many companies are currently reacting to market conditions and diversifying into new sectors to survive beyond the pandemic. Having access to a diverse talent pool and good staff is becoming more critical to their existence.
Service leavers and veterans come equipped with a wide range of skills, whichever rank they have reached. This gives them the potential to fill labour shortages in both trade and management roles. Employers want individuals who are savvy, innovative, resilient and prepared to go the extra mile. Former military personnel have these qualities in abundance.
Work placements allow the candidate to showcase their skills, while the employer can give them a sense of what careers are available in the industry.
If individuals become mentors for former servicepeople, it can be incredibly rewarding: it presents an opportunity to enhance their skills and remain energised and engaged with the industry.
Q: Can you give an example of a company or project that has worked successfully with BuildForce?
AF: HS2 recently launched its jobs portal and announced BuildForce as its military job broker, building on the success already achieved on a project that employs former military personnel in a variety of roles.
HS2 is an incredibly complex project, so for it to identify those ex-servicepeople as a key talent pool is fantastic.
Q: What made you get involved in BuildForce?
AF: I created the programme to recruit former military personnel at Lendlease in 2008, and was then approached by Wilson James chair Gary Sullivan – an ex-serviceman himself – who asked whether I would like to get involved in rolling out an industry-wide programme.
I love people. I love talking to people. I love hearing their stories, and I absolutely love seeing them progress. That was at the heart of wanting to do more.
My maternal grandfather was a marine in the Second World War and my paternal grandfather was a construction director, so creating BuildForce and working with both of these sectors felt as though it was destined to happen.
Q: You are a chartered surveyor; what benefit do you think this brings to BuildForce?
AF: For me, being chartered brings a deep-rooted respect for our industry and the professions in it. I’ve been in a commercial role for 23 years with Lendlease and was recently awarded RICS fellowship, having been MRICS for 19 years, so to be in a position where I can champion my profession and encourage new entrants from the military to pursue surveying as a career is quite satisfying. I mentor a few of the surveyors on the programme and actively encourage them all to pursue their accreditation.
Q: How has BuildForce adapted during the COVID-19 pandemic?
AF: BuildForce has ramped up its online support and social media presence and hosted live events online in a bid to introduce ex-servicepeople to the construction industry in the safety of their own homes.
A big focus has been our mental health offering. At the start of lockdown, we moved our stress management programme – led by psychologist Bernie Graham – online. Many of our service leavers and veterans are anxious about their futures, worried for their families and struggling to cope with isolation. The course focuses on identifying factors that will affect their mental health, and we provide coping mechanisms as well as signposting further support.
As the construction industry has remained partially open during the lockdowns, and the government has stated it will be identifying public-sector projects that could be brought forward or accelerated to kick-start the economy, we have been incredibly busy. It looks as though there will be a healthy pipeline of work in years to come, for which a pool of diverse and skilled talent is needed.