BESA Urges Military Engineers to Become Building Safety Trainers

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11 December 2025

The Building Engineering Services Association is encouraging military engineers transitioning to civilian life to consider becoming trainers, assessors and building safety auditors.

BESA says that army leavers’ technical and leadership skills developed in challenging situations, working under pressure, adapting to new technologies and environments quickly, and delivering results against tight deadlines are perfect for the building services sector.

While many veterans can be recruited directly into the sector’s workforce, BESA is urging ex-military personnel to consider signing up to BESA’s fully funded Skills Legacy programme which was launched this year to recruit 100 trainers and assessors to help further education providers deliver more building services apprenticeships. 

The programme creates a pathway to become a trainer or assessor qualified to a Level 3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (CAVA).

“With a background that values commitment, structure, and integrity, former armed forces personnel are ideal for passing on a strong work ethic and the importance of reliability to a new generation – things that are hugely valuable to employers."

–Stuart Rattray

Head of Competence, BESA

The scheme will train engineers to become qualified building safety auditors in line with the ISO 9001 management standard to help the industry cope with new competence requirements created by the Building Safety Act.

“68 per cent of UK employers struggled to find skilled workers in the past year, with the shortfall costing businesses a collective £4.4 billion,” said BESA’s Head of Competence Stuart Rattray. 

“Yet there is an often-overlooked solution hiding in plain sight in the shape of highly trained people leaving our armed forces.

“They represent a rich and largely untapped pool of skilled, dedicated professionals who bring with them a wealth of transferable skills, discipline, and a proven ability to thrive in high-pressure environments.

“However, as well as being ideal direct recruits into the built environment workforce, they can also be rapidly re-trained to help our colleges deliver more of the specialist courses we so desperately need.

“With a background that values commitment, structure, and integrity, former armed forces personnel are ideal for passing on a strong work ethic and the importance of reliability to a new generation – things that are hugely valuable to employers.

“They can also hit the ground running which is also extremely valuable at a time when our industry is struggling to cope with an ageing, and therefore shrinking, workforce.”

Picture a photograph showing two people wearing hi-vis jackets and hard hats, facing away from the camera. Image Credit: BESA

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 11 December 2025

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