The CIOB and the BLM movement
There’s no escaping the issue that’s dominating headlines around the world – and rightly so – the Black Lives Matter movement. It's right to talk about what the CIOB should and could do in support of this movement.
The world of construction is always changing. Our blogs uncover the latest developments in the industry and provide insight into the work CIOB and our members are doing for the built environment.
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There’s no escaping the issue that’s dominating headlines around the world – and rightly so – the Black Lives Matter movement. It's right to talk about what the CIOB should and could do in support of this movement.
In February, in what seems like a different world, we launched the Real Face of Construction 2020. The report looked broadly at the social and economic impact of construction and one aim was to illustrate the extent to which the built environment shapes the lives of everyone.
These are unprecedented times, as we all know, and there is much that we in the construction community are keeping our eye on – whether or not to open sites, government financial support for businesses, supply chain difficulties and more.
In a previous blog post we considered the different restrictions in place for the construction sector in the Republic of Ireland (Ireland) and Northern Ireland (NI). This post considers the situations in Scotland and Wales and, given the collaborative nature of the construction sector, suggests the need for a coordinated approach across the UK and Ireland.
With a plan now in place to ease the COVID-19 restrictions in Ireland, and a similar announcement from Stormont for Northern Ireland planned for next week, it is an opportune moment to reflect on the different regimes the construction sector has been operating under across Ireland since the restrictions were put in place.
The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) is working with Alzheimer’s Society to support the construction sector to become more dementia-friendly.
850,000 people in the UK are living with dementia, a number that is expected to rise to 1 million by 2021. It is highly likely that many of the people you work with will be affected by dementia in some way:
It’s been a little over six months since last year’s Construction Manager of the Year Awards. I’m delighted to announce that we have a new category for CMYA 2020 which will highlight the very best of the emerging talent in our industry.
I think we can all agree that being in lockdown or subject to restrictions on movement is making us all consider not just how we work, but also how we can continue to look after our professional development and growth.
After days and weeks of lockdown I’m sure that you, like me, have been manic trying to tackle the different challenges of operating in a much more virtual environment. You may have also found yourself with a bit of extra time on your hands. There’s tempting fodder out there – TikTok dances, Friday night drinks on Houseparty, bingeworthy streaming (top tip: Tiger King on Netflix is compelling, compulsive and cringeworthy all at the same time). Or perhaps you’re using the extra hours at home you’ve saved by ditching the commute to become your best self: online workout or yoga classes, virtual museums, theatres streaming past shows for free, all those edifying foreign language films you missed first time round…
I’m not the first to state that these are challenging times – the Covid-19 situation is changing the way we are all working and living at the moment. But as a community we can come together and bear many of the challenges we face collectively.
At the time of writing, the construction sector is, along with the rest of the UK, grappling with a global crisis caused by the Coronavirus. Because of the nature of our work, we are well prepared to deal with many health and safety challenges, but the demands we are facing now are unprecedented. While we don’t know the full scale or duration of this crisis, I am hopeful that when the dust has settled, we will have learned valuable lessons.