PRESS RELEASE: Role Model Signs Up To Support On-demand Virtual Work Experience

• As educators juggle the logistics of operating for the new school year, 900,000 young are set to leave education into an unprecedented job market
• Work experience is likely to remain disrupted as remote working and social distancing remain in place, and some 2021 A-levels and GCSEs are already cancelled
• On-demand Virtual Work Experience allows pupils to access real-world built environment tasks at any time, contributed by the whole construction industry
• Government’s BuildBackBetter commitment offers an opportunity to showcase the industry to young people over the next 10 years

LONDON, UK: Built Environment Skills in Schools (BESS) today announced that Anjali Pindoria, the highly recognised and respected construction industry spokesperson, has added a task to the BESS on-demand Virtual Work Experience platform. As part of Anjali’s ongoing work and commitment to the future workforce of the construction industry, she has decided to share an insight into her life as a Quantity Surveyor with her employer, Avi Contracts.

Ms Pindoria said, “I was really excited to create a 45-minute virtual work experience task that students all around the UK can complete in their own time and learn more about the work I do. I am so proud of the construction industry and the incredible projects we deliver, but sometimes it can be difficult to explain what we do to young people. BESS has built a great platform to support its extensive network of schools, and it was a no-brainer for me to use my own skills and expertise to develop a challenging student task.”

Hosted on the BESS Virtual Work Experience platform, Anjali’s task will join other practical, real-world challenges that allow students to explore the broad scope of the construction industry without having to pre-select any discipline or curriculum subject to get started. In addition to the inspiring insight into her work, Anjali’s task also incorporates employability skills to support young people into the world of work.

Kathryn Lennon-Johnson, founder of BESS, said, “It’s such an honour to have a well-known and recognised industry celebrity like Anjali supporting this initiative. Our on-demand virtual work experience platform allows young people to explore the whole of the construction industry at their own pace while ensuring they are completely safeguarded. Anjali’s work as a Quantity Surveyor on the refit and redevelopment of an historic London hotel gives students a great insight into the challenges of budgets and supply management.”

Virtual work experience solutions can provide evidence for schools towards the compulsory Gatsby Benchmarks including the requirements to learn from labour market information, link curriculum learning to careers, provide experience of workplaces, and deliver engaging student encounters with employers and employees. The BESS on-demand Virtual Work Experience platform is promoted into over 4,000 UK senior schools and offers unrestricted use by students. The platform offers an opportunity for every business in construction to provide a task, regardless of geography, discipline or organisation size.

The platform can be accessed at https://virtualworkexperience.beskillsinschools.co.uk