Construction professionals are being urged to act as mentors for young people training to become the next generation of workers in the industry.

The West Midlands Construction UTC (WMCUTC), which is sponsored by CITB, is appealing for volunteers to help its 14 to 19-year-old students gain a deeper insight into careers in the building sector.

It is hoped the mentoring programme will help to broaden the horizons and aspirations of the students, as well as building their understanding of the world of work.

Among the responsibilities of the mentors, who can be from any area of the industry, will be to attend meetings with the pupils twice a year and to attend a special half-day training session.

They will also be required to provide support to the students and answer any questions they may have in between meetings over email.

The WMCUTC, which is based in Wolverhampton, is hoping to sign up enough mentors for every one of the students enrolling for the term starting in September 2016.

It was successful in meeting this aim for its September 2015 intake of students, with volunteers coming from construction firms including Barratt, Carillion, Hewden, Lovell Partnerships, Morgan Sindall, Redrow, Thomas Vale and Willmott Dixon.

Catering to young people from Birmingham, the Black Country, Staffordshire and Shropshire, the centre provides technical learning alongside GCSEs.

Bruce Boughton, People Development Manager at Lovell Partnerships said: “This is a unique partnership between business and the WMCUTC, and is a clear demonstration of the industry’s commitment to find, develop and encourage the next generation of construction trade, technical, and professional people.”

To find out more information about the scheme, visit: http://www.westmidlandsconstructionutc.co.uk/