The 2025 i-Construct Event, held on 15–16 October at the Civil Engineering Training Centre (CETC), was a phenomenal success.
It delivered real impact for the construction industry, for young people, and for the Solent LSIP’s priorities. The event also supported our Sector Roundtable Outcomes, where many employers highlighted recruitment challenges caused by perceptions of the construction industry.
– Promote employer engagement to raise awareness & aspirations of employment in sectors facing skill gaps and/or are influenced by negative perceptions.
– Promote diversity & empower communities to access opportunities irrespective of their background.
– Help raise aspirations for employment by supporting employers to better articulate their offer to a wider audience.
– Provide learners with a clearer view of the different training pathways to employment and skills development
– Explore the potential for, and facilitate the co-location of, industry and training facilities as a way of improving pathways and easily linking employers with training providers and learners.
Across the day, the event welcomed an incredible 550 students from 40 schools across Hampshire and the South Coast to meet a vast range of employers showcasing a huge range of roles, work activities and passion for exploring what our industry has to offer.
Hosted at the impressive CETC training facility, the students arrived nervous of what the day might bring but were soon absorbed by the electric atmosphere created by the organisers; became filled with energy and consumed with curiosity. They had the opportunity to interview companies, find out what they did, how and why, then create a presentation to share what they’d discovered to a panel of judges made up of construction professionals. A host of awards will be presented to the most inspiring students and presentations at a ceremony next February.
The Solent LSIP focus is on supporting local businesses to thrive through skill development, and our opportunity at i-Construct to make an award to the most engaged and impactful business at the event was an honour.
We arranged a feedback wall for students to record which company had made the biggest impression on them and how. The results have been shared with the event organisers who will make the ‘winner’ decision from the comments left.
The event should win one really just off the back of one of the student feedback comments: “I’ve had an absolute HOWLER”!
The event more than met it’s aims and served as a powerful platform to inspire the next generation and showcase the breadth of opportunities within our sector. Comments reflected appreciation for the hands-on experiences, engaging presentations, and welcoming environment.
Alongside the feedback wall was a voting station – the students needed to put a token in the relevant box after considering:
“Are you more likely to consider a career or find out more about construction as a result of iConstruct”
Honest responses were encouraged, and three options were given: Yes, No, Maybe
– We received an outstanding 87% positive feedback from student participants:55% yes, 34% maybe
This level of satisfaction confirms the event’s value and impact on young minds.
From a qualitative research point of view, watching the body language of the students change after giving them the initial meeting and induction talk, to the manner in which they appeared after their first activity experience and then grow throughout the opportunities presented by the day went on was enough to prove positive impact around this sector. A truly impactful event which met it’s aims to encourage more consideration of the construction industry within tomorrow’s workforce and linking the region’s employers with the skills system and its students – mission accomplished!
About Hampshire Chamber of Commerce
Hampshire Chamber of Commerce is the independent voice of local business across the county and one of the largest regional business networks in the UK. With a strategic vision to ‘unlock Hampshire’s potential’, Hampshire Chamber brings together the combined influence, strength and expertise of the county’s three former major chambers. It works with over 2,000 individual firms spanning all sectors and sizes of business. Member services include training, advice, international trade documentation, events, networking opportunities and lobbying to policymakers on issues affecting business. Hampshire Chamber’s business network is designed to help any employer to grow and thrive irrespective of their stage on the enterprise journey.