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To support an ever growing cultural diversity amongst our workforce, we have adopted simple provisions to make sure everybody feels welcome and are able to make a positive contribution to the project. Our site is not the biggest, but we have been able to accommodate a prayer room in one of the smaller offices and at selected times of the…
The construction industry consists of workers who are from all over the world and may not speak English, in order to help their workers and contractors understand and absorb the Code of Considerate Practice they created a language board. This helped them to explain and engage all workers with the Scheme as there were no language difficulties preventing them from…
The interpreter is easily recognisable with a hi-vis that states ‘Interpreter’ on the back, at the Buckingham Green project. Having the interpreter identified helps people understand who can help translate to and from the diverse workforce, to help meet the needs and wellbeing of the operatives. The operatives are also better supported and encouraged by improved communication for those whose…
During the monthly workforce consultation meetings, one of the site operatives suggested the introduction of Multilingual Mental Health First Aiders. The idea was well accepted and it is now currently in use in all of this contractors projects to ensure all those on site have someone they can speak to without having the issue of a language barrier. Signage has…
Nearly one in five people have some form of physical, visual, auditory, cognitive, or neurological disabilities that could affect their ability to access information online the same way as other people. They may struggle with: Focusing on relevant sections of text The font, text size, or spacing of the text Poor colour contrasts between background and foreground Distractions presented by…
This contractor have been working collaboratively with Lambeth College and London South Bank University (LSBU), to pilot a programme which aims to upskill diverse members of their workforce who are foreign and often struggle with the English language, providing them with the opportunity to learn and feel more comfortable engaging with other people on site. This voluntary course will also…
The contractor has introduced a paperless multilingual online safety induction. The online induction is a video with embedded questions which the viewer should be capable of answering and obtaining the 80% pass mark. The video has subtitle options in Lithuanian, Polish, Bulgarian and Romanian. Volunteers are made available to help with translation for the site specific induction. Anyone passing the…
The team at the IRR & BioQuarter Enabling infrastructure project in Edinburgh identified a need to provide clear instructions to delivery drivers arriving to site. As the site is adjacent to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and sits on the emergency access route for ambulances reaching the A&E department, it is of vital importance to ensure that deliveries can quickly and efficiently…
Due to the coronavirus social distancing measures we have a lack of wellbeing facilitators. In light of this we have created a subcontractor newspaper to engage our contractors and to get our safety message across in a fun and informative way. We have also translated the newsletter to the most popular languages that are currently used on site to ensure…
As part of being accredited as Leaders in Diversity, we have set up a notice board on site to promote the values of FREDIE: Fairness, Respect, Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Engagement. A FREDIE calendar highlights events throughout the year, such as Mental Health Awareness Week, Black History Month, Pride and Time to Talk Day. There is also a Wellbeing Calendar…
On the Broadway project, there are a large number of deliveries drivers visiting the project on a daily basis, including deliveries coming from across Europe. Some of the drivers coming from Europe are non-English speakers and safety standards can be different too. For those reasons, the project team decided to create a multilingual Safety Information sheet for visiting vehicle drivers…
The site encountered a problem with Punjabi speaking concrete workers failing the MEWP training. Upon further investigation they found that the IPAF do not provide the test in Punjabi despite it being the UK’s third most spoken language according to last UK census. The site team created a case study regarding the addition of a Punjabi language test paper and…
In the construction industry, clear and concise communication is key to ensure that a project is delivered on time and to the client’s expectations. Furthermore, as information regarding a project is regularly updated and comes from many different sources, the necessity for accurate communication is all the more important. Accurate communication must flow between all members of the project team,…
On The Broadway project for Multiplex, we invited virtual reality experiences to the project to demonstrate and loan to us the virtual reality headset for operatives to undertake training for slips, trips and falls. The slip, trips and falls training module challenged our operatives to identify safety hazards in a simulated environment and at the end of the assessment, the…
At South Quay Plaza (SQP), we value the diversity of our workforce and inclusivity is important to us, therefore a number of Berkeley Managers have embarked on a mission to learn the basics of a language which is common on site using Duolingo. Even simple phrases such as ‘hello’, ‘good morning’ and ‘how are you’ have made a positive impact…