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The Built Environment Schools Trust (BE Schools Trust) has announced the launch of a plan to significantly expand its activities in schools and colleges, as it aims to increase the number of young people from all different backgrounds wanting to work in the built environment.
Construction Industry Council writes:
The initiative includes changing the name from the Chartered Surveyors Training Trust (CSTT) to BE Schools Trust and the extension of its remit to one across all the built environment sector. The charity, set up by the Chartered Surveyors Livery Company in 1987, has worked during its history on addressing youth unemployment and provided a gateway for many into the profession by its pioneering work in surveying apprenticeships.
The Trust has been working exclusively within schools for approaching 7 years. Terry Watts, BE Schools Trust CEO, said ‘The Trust’s starting point was to tackle the woeful lack of knowledge about the sector in schools. Too many entrants into the sector arrive by accident or only with the benefit of existing family connections. This is patently not good enough for a sector that is such a crucial part of our economy.’
The Trust is not a careers organisation. It is focussed on education and providing knowledge to young people who can then make informed career choices. Designed by teachers for teachers, its My Environment My Future (MEMF) programme is now established in over 300 schools, used by some 600 teachers and delivered to around (50,000) students. It embeds knowledge, resources and guidance on careers within the built environment into the delivery of the core Geography curriculum at GCSE and A-Level. It is free and fully funded to all schools making it accessible to every young person. MEMF is supplemented by an inter- school competition where this year participants, aged 11 to 18, are challenged to re-design a local building or space with an emphasis on sustainable principles.
Initial pilot studies revealed that just 6% of young people had knowledge of the built environment. However, BE Schools Trust’s recent impact analysis showed dramatic improvement—70% of MEMF participants reported better understanding of the sector, and 45% expressed increased interest in exploring careers in the built environment.
