A scheme helping ex-armed forces personnel gain employment in construction is launching in Cambridge on Friday.
The programme helps professionals transfer to bricklaying with the help of training, qualifications and a guaranteed job offer on completion.
The scheme is launching at Waterbeach Barracks, while it will bring together industry leaders, training partners, employers and high-profile former service personnel for a day of networking, speeches and live demonstrations.
These include a Military Playground challenge and a live bricklaying competition, reflecting the physical, practical and performance-driven nature of both military service and site work.
Eve Livett, chief executive of the Masonry Association of Great Britain, said: “Military to Masonry represents exactly the kind of bold, practical leadership our industry needs.
“This programme doesn’t offer sympathy, it offers a future. Service leavers bring discipline, teamwork and resilience in abundance, and masonry offers them something just as powerful in return: pride in their craft, visible results and a long-term career.
“At the Masonry Association, we are proud to support a pathway that removes barriers, fast-tracks talent and guarantees real work.
“This is not about training people and hoping for the best, it’s about creating certainty, confidence and opportunity for those who have already given so much.”
Military to Masonry features a 10-day training programme led by experienced industry professionals.
The course is designed to reflect real site conditions and the skills required.
Participants gain a Level 1 Health and Safety qualification, a CSCS Red Trainee Card, and the practical ability to lay bricks to a professional standard.
However, programme leaders stress that the most important day is day 11, the first day on a live construction site.
Every element of the training is designed to prepare learners for this moment, ensuring they arrive confident, capable and productive.
Each cohort is limited to six service leavers, allowing for one-to-one mentoring.