Sir Ian Dixon Scholarship
The Sir Ian Dixon Scholarship was established in 1998 in conjunction with the Worshipful Company of Constructors and named in honour of the late Sir Ian Dixon. The scholarship supports research in the general field of construction management and offers an annual scholarship award of £2,000.
An agreement is first reached with a company to act as a host for the scholarship. The company then selects a suitable candidate for the award and puts their details forward to the CIOB and the Worshipful Company. During the scholarship the scholar remains in full employment and is paid their normal salary by the company.
The Worshipful Company of Constructors
The Worshipful Company of Constructors was founded as the Company of Builders in 1976 and received its Grant of Livery and its current title in 1990. The Constructors’ Company embraces professionals from all parts of construction, as well as those, like lawyers and accountants, who work with the industry. Members of the Court personally assist scholars and representatives of scholars’ employers right through the scholarship process.
The Scholarship Process
At the beginning of the scholarship, the scholar gives a presentation on the proposed topic to an invited audience of CIOB and Worshipful Company representatives. This provides an opportunity for discussion and comment. Review meetings with an individual representative from each organisation, for which the scholar produces a short progress report, are then held in not less than three-monthly intervals. These meetings ensure that the work is on schedule and the scholar receives any necessary support.
At the end of the 12 month scholarship period the scholar must produce a written report of 8,000 – 10,000 words. A rehearsal presentation is then given to a small CIOB/ Worshipful Company audience and this is followed by a public presentation at a venue and event chosen by the host company.
Current Scholars
Benjamin Potts from Killby & Gayford and Edward Basterfield from Costain are the current 2007 scholars. Benjamin Potts is investigating ‘How to effectively implement an EMS 14001 standard in Medium Sized Building Contractors (specifically at site level) Edward Basterfield is researching ‘The Post Study Training and Development of Construction Graduates’.
Past Scholars
| 2006 | Gemma Jones | Laing O'Rourke | 'Retained and existing estates versus new build in PFI healthcare' |
| 2006 | Daphne Denijs | Sir Robert McAlpine | 'A comparison of UK and Dutch approaches to management behaviour and implementation of health and safety on similar construction sites' |
| 2005 | Tom Merry | Taylor Woodrow | 'How effective is the DQI for schools at acheiving customer satisfaction and does it adequately address sustainability?' |
| 2005 | Andrew Anderson | Killby & Gayford | 'Acheiving Customer Satisfaction' |
2004 | Tim Smith | Kier Western | 'Investigating the merits of part-time of day-release study compared to full-time graduate qualification' |
| 2004 | Pippa Trout | Rok | 'Challenging the mind-set of our industry' |
| 2003 | Daniel Hardwick | Mace | 'The role of the modern construction manager' |
| 2003 | Andrew Jones | Mace | 'Management of strategic change in the construction industry' |
| 2002 | Guy Cotton | Galliford Try | 'Shaping and building our future' |
| 2001 | Duncan Goodall | HBG Construction | 'Action not words: taking real responsibility for the environment' |
| 2000 | Mark Tozer | Shepherd Construction | 'e-procurement' |
| 2000 | Ben Tanner | Ballast Plc | 'Best value' |
| 1999 | Simon Trevor | Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd | 'The underpinning knowledge required by managers in today's construction industry' |
| 1998 | Rosemary Buchholz | Willmott Dixon Housing Ltd | 'How information systems can assist in the management of an innovation strategy and implementation plan' |
More information
If you are interested in applying to become a Sir Ian Dixon Scholar or would like further information please contact Sarah Peace, CIOB Research Manager on Tel: +44 (0) 1344 630776 or email speace@ciob.org.uk.
