Charlton Athletic Community Trust (CACT) hosted a successful employability workshop at The Valley, providing young people with an introduction to the construction industry.
The event, held in partnership with Martin Arnold, Potter Raper, Faithorn Farrell Timms and United Living, aimed to give attendees valuable insight into the diverse career opportunities within the sector.
Alongside these partners, CACT is running a Social Value Pilot Scheme with the Royal Borough of Greenwich that seeks to demonstrate that targeted social value spend can be delivered where need is greatest within the Borough.
As part of this Social Value Pilot Scheme, the employability workshop helped young people understand the current high demand for skilled labour in construction to meet ambitious housebuilding targets, the wide range of jobs available in construction, the pathways to acquiring essential skills and the next steps toward building a career in the industry.
Experts from CACT's partners together with representatives from Axis Europe, Flower Skills Training, London South East Colleges and the Department for Work & Pensions were on hand to share their knowledge and experience, offering practical guidance and support.
The initiative aligns with CACT’s ongoing commitment to supporting young people in developing skills and finding meaningful employment opportunities. By engaging with industry professionals on the day, attendees gained a clearer understanding of the construction sector and the potential career paths it offers.
Stuart Butler-Gallie, Environment, Social and Governance Consultant for CACT said: “This event was a great opportunity to introduce our partners to young people either not in employment, education or training or who have started construction training/apprenticeship programmes and want to understand routes into employment in the construction sector".
“We had around 50 attendees who were split into groups engaged in interactive sessions designed and delivered by our partners. These sessions covered the range of jobs that exist in construction and what qualifications are needed for each, a panel session from young people employed with our partners each explaining their personal journey into construction and a practical session on why health & safety is at the heart of every part of the construction sector. It was fantastic to see the engagement from the cohort of attendees during the sessions and at the lunch break, asking questions and wanting to learn more.”
Darren, one of the young people in attendance said: “It was a very insightful day, full of many positives.
“Credit to all of the employers who were here as they were so open to any questions that we had to ask and I’ll leave here knowing a lot more about what each of the employers have to offer.
“As a young person, sometimes there have been moments where its felt daunting to reach out and network, but to know that Charlton Athletic have this community programme which is open to everyone, regardless of your background or your work experience is really reassuring that you can come here and get something out of it.”
Another young attendee, Archie, added: “It shows that not only the borough cares, but the club cares about their fans and the local community, helping them find a way in life.
"Being aged 16-21, you can feel very lost in life, you’re not sure what you want to do and some might end up doing silly stuff if you’re not pointed in the right direction, so it’s very important that they can do things like this for us.”
Meanwhile, Procurement Strategy Lead for Royal Borough of Greenwich, Dean Hogan, said: “People learn and understand things in different ways, so making an environment which is approachable makes it less intimidating and more appealing for them - It’s really important as a way of engaging with them and getting them to turn up.
“There were some really good numbers here and it’s important to find a way to make it an event they want to get involved with - I felt this environment and format was fantastic for that and it’s proven on the day as it worked really well.”
Click here to find out more about CACT’s partnership with Martin Arnold, Potter Raper, Faithorn Farrell Timms and United Living and the pilot programme to deliver targeted social value where it is needed across the Royal Borough of Greenwich.