Women encouraged to get involved in the construction industry

Local businesses and campaign groups in Nottinghamshire are encouraging women to enter the world of construction.

A special event named ‘The future is her’ was held last week to raise awareness of employment opportunities for women in the construction industry and offered the chance for women to try out various trades such as plastering, plumbing, painting and decorating.

The event was was put together by Nottingham City Homes, which is responsible for managing 29,000 council homes, as part of its ‘Women in Construction’ initiative.

The scheme aims to increase the proportion of women in Nottinghamshire trade workforces from the current 2% to 10% by 2020; an increase of 600%. It also hopes to increase the current representation of female managers in Nottingham City Home’s Property Services team from 20% to 36% during the same period.

Rebecca Hart has been leading the campaign and commented: “I trained as an electrician with Nottingham City Homes 13 years ago and I have never looked back.

“It is a skill I know will always be needed – and something that will constantly challenge me as technologies evolve. Even though we have around 400 people working in our trade workforce at Nottingham City Homes, less than two per cent of them are women.

“While some industries are far from balanced, we are still seeing an under-representation of women in construction, especially within management roles. Our campaign is not about redressing a balance, but raising awareness among women that construction is not just a man’s game – it could be something that works for us all.”

Nottingham City Homes Chief Executive, Nick Murphy, said: “It has been well documented over the past 12 months that the construction industry is facing a potential skills gap.

“There are nearly 200,000 new roles expected across the sector over the coming five years.

“As a large employer in the city, we believe in taking on the best person for the job, whether they are a man or a woman, and whatever their background is.

“I hope this initiative is successful in breaking down some of the barriers that traditionally male-dominated industries can present – and makes the women of Nottingham more aware of the options available to them.”

The Women in Construction initiative will also seek to encourage those women who join property services receive encouragement to advance their careers and progress through the ranks.

Helen Cort, a plumber at Nottingham City Homes said: “I started in the construction industry a bit later in life, after having had my children, and I’m so glad I made that move. There should be no barriers for women getting into this kind of career, I think the only barriers there are the ones we create ourselves.

“My job can mean getting dirty, working on building sites and isn’t the most glamorous role, but that doesn’t stop me being a woman. If you look beyond the uniform and the site boots, I have hair extensions, false eyelashes and wear make up. Outside of work I’m a girly girl – this job has never stopped me doing that.”

The Women in Construction campaign will continue over the coming year and will undertake visits to schools to meet with children and young people to educate them on the opportunities available to them in the construction industry.

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