I Am a Housebuilder, the initiative set up by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for SME Housebuilders, has announced the pairings from its inaugural mentorship programme, with 25 women paired with some of the UK housebuilding industry’s most dynamic female leaders.
Due to the strong response to the launch of the Mentorship Programme, two new mentors have joined the initiative – Rutu Buddhdev, director of Amara Property and Elli Kiely, design & innovation director at HJK Construction.
The I Am a Housebuilder Mentorship Programme, which is sponsored by Saint-Gobain Interior Solutions, partners women who are already working in the construction/housebuilding industry with experienced professionals, many of whom own their own SME housebuilding businesses.
The mentees from the inaugural cohort range from 23 to 58 years old, with applicants from a broad spectrum of disciplines across the property/housebuilding sector, including architects, planners, site assistants, letting agents, designers and marketers. Several have already established their own housebuilding/construction businesses and hope to learn from the mentors how to further develop their skills to enable them to scale their businesses.
The initiative was set up to make the sector more inclusive for women, with the ultimate objective of improving diversity in order to tackle the skills shortage and increase housing supply.
Edwin de Silva, former secretariat for the APPG for SME housebuilders, commented: “The incredibly enthusiastic response that we received to the launch of the mentorship programme shows that this is something that the industry has been calling out for. Programmes such as this are incredibly important to ensure women have the support to help them excel in a sector that has long been male-dominated.”
Rutu Buddhdev, director at Amara Property, said: “Empowering women in the housebuilding industry will not only help solve the skills shortage but also create a more diverse and dynamic workforce. The extremely high standard of applications that we received to the programme is proof that there is enormous talent out there and tapping into this will be crucial if we are to deliver the new homes that are so desperately needed in this country.”
Ian Winroth, residential sector director at Saint-Gobain Interior Solutions, said: “Saint-Gobain is proud to sponsor I Am a Housebuilder, which aligns with our commitment to improve diversity across the industry. By connecting participants in the programme with experienced mentors at the top of their game, they will be empowered to unlock their full potential and ascend to senior leadership roles.”
Through the mentorship programme, which will span 12 months, mentors and mentees will meet on a quarterly basis with the mentors providing counsel on an ad hoc basis. The programme aims to equip mentees with the skills, expertise and confidence that they need to excel in their careers.
