Proud to support the Inclusive Value project

We are proud to support the 'Inclusive Value' project, which aims to help construction businesses towards more inclusive workplace practices. 

In partnership with City of Glasgow College and Equate Scotland, we are seeking to support construction businesses throughout the UK to attract and retain more women in the industry. The ‘Inclusive Value’ project, which is being funded by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSIC), aims to deliver a free-to-use online self-assessment tool to support construction businesses to identify ways in which they can adopt more inclusive workplace practices.  The tool will be accompanied by a range of support materials including a best practice guide, case studies and industry benchmarking data. 

The UK construction industry contributes £138bn annually to the national economy and employs over 3 million people. It is recognised as a diverse sector that delivers homes, services and vital infrastructure and impacts on the life of every person in Britain. However, the diversity of work carried out by the industry is not reflected in the diversity of the workforce with women making up less than 15% of the workforce.

As the industry responds to an increasingly fast paced modernisation agenda and growing skills gaps, it will need a more diverse workforce that is representative of wider society.

The self-assessment tool is scheduled to launch during Q3 2019.

Paul Hamer, Chief Executive of Sir Robert McAlpine, said: “We are proud to sponsor the ‘Inclusive Value’ project. We believe this is an important initiative that will truly benefit the construction industry as a whole. Currently, only 11% of the construction workforce are women, and, within this, women make up only 1% of modern apprentices and site workers. This is something that needs to be addressed. With a growing skills shortage, organisations within the construction industry need to act now to encourage more women to view this as a great career choice. At Sir Robert McAlpine, we are committed to leading by example on inclusion and inspiring industry wide change.”

Jennifer Smart, Business Relationship Manager, CSIC, said ‘In an industry where there is demand for new housing and infrastructure provision to meet government targets, it is essential that companies develop the right culture to attract and retain women to address the gender gap.  This CSIC funded project with Sir Robert McAlpine, City of Glasgow College and Equate Scotland aims to create a toolkit to support this journey to a more diverse and inclusive workforce.’

Douglas Morrison, Associate Director of Innovation and STEM at City of Glasgow College, said ‘The construction industry has been tackling sector attractiveness issues for some time. The progressive approach that Sir Robert McAlpine are taking to catalyse meaningful change in the gender diversity of the industry is truly inspiring.  This project will support a wide range of construction businesses to make meaningful and impactful change that will support both current and future employees to realise the benefits of a career in construction’.

Talat Yaqoob, Director at Equate Scotland, said ‘Construction is a crucial sector to Scotland’s economic growth as such it is important that women have access to employment and equal opportunities at all levels. With a widening skills gap and aging workforce it is both an economic and social priority for the industry to address the gender imbalance. We know that a diverse workforce is good for business but it is not always clear on how to achieve this. This tool will enable employers to take practical steps towards creating work place cultures that foster diversity, inclusion and innovation.’

Inclusive Value is funded by the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSIC) and delivered in partnership between Sir Robert McAlpine, City of Glasgow College and Equate Scotland.

For more information, visit the Inclusive Value website: https://inclusivevalue.co.uk/