Agents Giving today launches an armed forces mentoring scheme to the property industry on behalf of the Royal British Legion.
Agents are being asked to give time - no more than 30 minutes per week - and sign up to an online mentoring scheme which aims to help armed forces personnel plan and launch a new career within the property industry after they leave active service.
The charity says that at any one time there are around 30,000 men and women in career transition as they leave the armed forces, with around 20 per cent expressing an interest in the property and construction industry.
With few other opportunities to establish contact with property professionals, this mentoring scheme aims to enable service leavers to gain experience and develop and use contacts through participation in mentoring activities.
The charity says that service personnel and veterans can connect with a friendly face in the industry, build relationships and share advice and feedback over an agreed period via email, phone, social media and face-to-face.
“We’re all indebted to those who have pursued a forces career and if, through Agents Giving, we can help even just a handful into employment within the property industry, then it will be worthwhile. Services personnel have a solid work ethic and integrity and possess specific skills across a wide range of areas that are ideally suited for various roles within the estate agency sector.”
The scheme is being piloted by The Royal British Legion across the UK and has the backing of Agents Giving. It is targeting the property and construction sectors, with a view to rolling out across other sectors after a nine-month period.
Agents Giving are looking for volunteers from across the sector, at all levels of the business, to act as mentors. To signup to the scheme email your contact details to mentoring@britishlegion.org.uk.
Lenwell Property Services have been operating the scheme since July of this year and Rob Wellstead from the agency will be attending The Estate Agency of The Year Awards this afternoon. He can also be contacted at rob@lenwell.com.
Ian Hunter, director of operations for the Royal British Legion, can also be contacted at ihunter@britishlegion.org.uk.
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I am an ex-soldier myself and well recognise the comments about the difficulty in establishing connections within any industry prior to leaving the forces. Small thing like mentoring and an introduction to your local network can give a useful leg up to people.
Well done Rob, and I fully support this worthwhile scheme.
Seconded. A great initiative.
Thank you Andrew for your comments. We have 13 staff members signed up to the scheme. It really is very little effort, a short phone call and perhaps an email is all that is required in many cases. Please email rob@lenwell.com I’ll send the signup details.
Ian Hunter, Programme Manager at the Legion, said: “Agents Giving’s support of the networking scheme is highly appreciated. These partnerships are starting to play an important part in veterans’ employment transition and providing opportunities for ex-Service personnel to tap into the hidden job market that accounts for some 70 per cent of all vacancies. It’s already evident that staff volunteering as mentors are enjoying the challenge of guiding others into a successful new career.”
Yes great initiative - with the way of the world at the moment our armed forces deserve every help we can give, along with our eternal gratitude.
Many thanks to all - fantastic response with over 130 agents registering interest and support for the scheme. We’re not specifically trying to develop a pool of experts mentors, the objective is simply to provide a connection for those keen to enter the industry to a friendly face that will help Service men and women in transition learn more about the sector and what it has to offer.
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