Building a new career

PROUDLY SUPPORTING MORE

WOMEN IN BUILDING SURVEYING

The Women Building Surveyors Program supports 40 successful candidates from Victorian Councils to begin the pathway to becoming a Municipal Building Surveyor.

This year the State Government established the Women Building Surveyors Program which commits $6.3 million over two years to give 40 women new opportunities to become Building Surveyors with Councils across Victoria. LGPro is proud to partner with Local Government Victoria to support participants into relevant training courses and provide ongoing professional development opportunities.

Most participants have commenced their studies, with an even spread across both the Bachelor and Advanced Diploma pathways (leading to an Unlimited or Limited registration, respectively). LGPro has been working with Local Government Victoria, industry bodies, Councils, training providers and professional organisations affiliated with building surveying to ensure that successful candidates are supported through regular networking events, professional development advice, and educational and industrial guidance.

You can follow their progress via: Women Building Surveyors Program.

KATE STEPS UP WITH THE WOMEN

BUILDING SURVEYORS PROGRAM

With a little help from a Victorian Government grant and coordination from LGPro, long time Hume City Council employee Kate Pirani is taking the steps to build her career.

Enforcement of building compliance, safety and building standards has been a responsibility of Councils through Building Surveyors for close to 30 years, but the number of registered Building Surveyors and Building Inspectors in Victoria has changed little in two decades.

At the same time, Victoria’s population has increased by around two million people and workloads have increased considerably.

The Victorian Government recently acknowledged the shortage and announced a Women Building Surveyors Program to encourage more women into the profession. The Program launched as part of the 2020/21 State Budget and committed $6.3 million over two years to give 40 women new opportunities to become Building Surveyors within Local Government across Victoria.

Hume City Council adopted the program and nominated one of their own to become a qualified Building Surveyor to help prop up and diversify the industry.

Peter Jolly, Hume’s Municipal Building Surveyor said: “There is a significant shortage of Building Surveyors in Victoria, and as with many occupations related to the building and construction industry, building surveying is a very male-centric profession. In response to concerns raised with (the) Government about the shortages, we had to get on board and nominate one of our own.”

Kate Pirani, who had worked in administrative support at the Council’s Municipal Building Surveyors office for nine years, earned a place. “It is very exciting for us that Kate was approved by Local Government Victoria for the funding allocation. Kate has now commenced in her role as Cadet Building Surveyor and we’re very supportive of her journey towards qualification and registration as a Municipal Building Surveyor of the future,” said Mr Jolly.

Ms Pirani was a Building Surveyors Assistant and had worked in the building industry for 19 years in an administrative role.

“In 2019 I started thinking about studying the Advanced Diploma of Building Surveying as it was offered for free as part of the TAFE priority courses program. But working full time and maintaining a work-life balance made it difficult to commit the hours to the course,” said Ms Pirani.

With the support of Hume City Council, Ms Pirani is on track to complete her course and become a qualified Building Surveyor. She looks forward to continuing her career journey within the building industry and is eager to get out on site with fellow surveyors and inspectors to get some further practical experience.

Hume City Council congratulates Ms Pirani for her courage to take the next step to further education and career growth with the support of the Victorian Government. The Council values and encourages continuous growth and career progression to create a valuable and knowledgeable workforce to better serve their community.

Being stuck at home last year due to COVID-19 encouraged me to reevaluate my future and gave me the push to enrol for the course part-time over four years. It’s now offered online, giving me the opportunity to study the Advanced Diploma of Building Surveying through Melbourne Polytechnic two nights a week after work.