Housebuilder continues support for Women into Construction

National housebuilder Lovell is continuing its membership with the Women into Construction (WIC) organisation, an important element of the company’s onoing campaign to increase the female representation in its staff and the industry as a whole.

“Our membership of Women into Construction gives us access to a high-quality pool of skilled and experienced recruits  as well as to advice and training to help us continue to successfully recruit and retain women,” says Lovell managing director Steve Coleby. “We are also able to offer placements to WIC candidates providing them with industry experience.”

The workforce of the company, which has Gold membership of WIC, is currently 993 across England, Scotland and Wales, including 280 women (28.2%) such as South Wales-based assistant site manager Katie Bagley, pictured on site at The Mill, Cardiff. That percentage is more than double the industry average, but Lovell will continue to push gender equality and increase the number still further.

“With women making up more than 28% of our workforce, we’re already doing much better than the industry average in terms of employing female workers but are conscious that there’s more to be done, particularly when it comes to getting more women into trade roles and senior management positions,” adds Coleby. “It’s essential that we do more to recruit and develop our female employees as well as continue to break down the barriers which may be preventing girls and young women from considering construction as a career option in the first place.”

Lovell hosts careers advice seminars, where women can find out more about the opportunities it offers and speak to established female members of the team about their experiences. Through schools and colleges, the company also encourages more girls and young women think about construction careers through the help of its female construction ambassadors.

Women into Construction managing director Kath Moore says: “Women into Construction are delighted to welcome Lovell as 2018 Gold members. We have been working in partnership with Lovell for several years, during which they have actively engaged with us to increase female representation within their work-force. It’s a pleasure to welcome a company with such a positive attitude towards increasing gender diversity.”