AN INITIATIVE aimed at encouraging women to join the engineering and construction industries has been launched.

TopJobs4Girls, a Kent-based campaign aimed at 16 to 24-year-old women, was launched by sending an employer’s pack to more than 2,000 Kent businesses, explaining the benefits that women can bring to their sectors.

The packs contain a CD of interviews with leading women professionals like Sara Pullen, an aeronautical engineer at BAe Systems who spoke to students at the Simon Langton Girls’ School, Canterbury, about her background and career experience.

The campaign is also aimed at employers and highlights the advantages of women in the industries, explaining the benefits to local companies of taking part in the campaign and helping to make sure that training meets the needs of the jobs.

With developments like the Thames Gateway and 2012 Olympics, experts are predicting a huge shortfall and research published recently by the Construction Skills Council forecasts that the construction industry alone needs an extra 2.8 million workers by 2010 to meet demand throughout the UK – that’s an average of 87,000 new recruits a year.

TopJobs4Girls, being delivered by colleges and trainers across Kent and led by South Kent College, aims to see another 250 women take on careers in the traditionally male-dominated industries in the next two years.

At the moment, only 10 per cent of employees in these fields are women and TopJobs4Girls aims to dispel the myths that may explain why there are so few women in the construction industries and get employers involved in actively encouraging women into these careers.

Julia Crompton, TopJobs4Girls project manager, said: "The campaign will help local businesses see that the skills and talent they need in their industries can be provided by young women.

"We understand that employers will recruit the most able candidate for a vacancy but what we’re trying to do is help more young women be in a position to apply for jobs and to be successful."

* To receive a CD or more information visit www.topjobs4girls.co.uk

Related Website: www.topjobs4girls.co.uk