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Women into Home Building programme reopens for applications

Woman on a construction site wearing a high vis jacket and hard hat and holding a clip board

The Home Builders Federation (HBF) has recently announced the launch of a fifth round of its successful Women into Home Building programme, designed to attract more women into site management roles within the construction industry.

Partnering with ten leading homebuilders, the programme offers over 30 training opportunities, support services and work placements to aspiring female site managers. Find out more in this week’s blog.

Addressing gender imbalance and skills shortages

Despite a significant skills shortage in the construction industry, women currently make up only 16% of the overall workforce and a mere 4% of site managers. The Women into Home Building program aims to address this gender imbalance and ensure the industry has a more inclusive and diverse talent pool for the future.

Since its inception in 2023, the program has engaged 238 women, successfully guiding 65 candidates through training and work experience and supporting 20 individuals into permanent roles within the industry.

What’s involved?

Participants in the fifth cohort will undergo comprehensive training to develop their knowledge of site management. Following successful completion of this, they will then be matched with a local homebuilding site for a two-week work placement, providing hands-on experience and opportunities to network with potential employers.

Participating builders include Bellway, Gleeson, Hill Group, Lovell Homes, Northstone, Places for People, Prospect Homes, St Modwen Homes, Tilia Homes, and Vistry Group.  

Neil Jefferson, Chief Executive at HBF, commented: 

“The home building industry offers a variety of rewarding careers and we must continue to invest in and increase the diversity of our workforce if we are to meet the ambitious housing targets set by the government.

“Having women in on-site leadership roles expands perspectives, introduces different leadership styles and boosts creativity, so we’re pleased to be working with our members once again to deliver the Women into Home Building programme.

“Our programme has been developed to increase awareness of the leadership careers available and routes to employment, whilst giving participants employer-backed knowledge and experience to kick-start their careers.”

The announcement follows the news of the programme’s initial delivery partner, Women into Construction, ceasing operations due to the challenging economic climate. To address potential barriers to participation, the fifth cohort will benefit from sponsorship from NHBC, which will provide support for travel and childcare costs.

Women who are interested joining the programme can apply on the HBF website. Applications close at 5pm on Sunday 22 September 2024.

28.08.2024

Feature image: Freepik

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