Building Heroes Celebrate Women in Construction for International Women's Day

For International Women's Day, we want to take a few moments to celebrate some of our amazing female graduates and team members.

We are committed to embracing equity in the workplace and beyond through our support to Reskill, Retrain and Redeploy the military community, veterans and other underrepresented groups who wish to enter the construction industry.

We are kicking off with Jo, one of current learners at the Construction Skills Academy in Wembley, delivered in partnership with Regal London and Capital City College.

Jo

Jo served in the Royal Navy for over 27 years with the Logistics branch as a Human Resources Manager and Administrator. She has been employed on ships deploying overseas, operational units at home and abroad, Helicopter Squadrons, Royal Marines Units and ended my career working within NATO based in North America.  

Jo said: "I wasn’t entirely certain on job prospects on leaving the service but the opportunity to attend the Building Heroes course came along and I jumped at the chance to attend and so grateful to be part of it. The course will offer me an insight into various areas within construction that will benefit my future in so many ways.  A great opportunity to learn new skills and gain confidence to do a satisfactory job enabling me to help myself and others."

Jo said she would encourage anyone to consider the Building Heroes course if they are planning on leaving the service or already left.

The demand for female operatives is slowly growing, be brave and bold in your choices, your future is out there.

Eleanor

Eleanor Henderson left the service and was looking for a new career path. After selling her house, and buying a plot of land where she is planning to build a house, she needed some practical skills to help out as much as possible. She thought it would be a good idea to join the Building Heroes multi-skills construction course, so she can then pursue a particular skill further whilst still getting a grounding in various trades.

_{Eleanor said: "I really enjoyed my time on the Building Heroes course – learning new skills from scratch, working with people from different services in an inclusive environment while having a laugh as I take my first steps on the path to ‘civilian’ life! My career goals are reinvigorated after the course, and I am now keen to start my self- build project. In the meantime, I am going to pursue plastering and tiling further, with a week of work experience with a plasterer this month which will be invaluable as well as my first job tiling a kitchen in a flat conversion! Building Heroes has given me confidence in my own construction skills and qualifications to evidence them."}

Eleanor said that the practical skills has been extremely useful for her personally, but the health and safety side and gaining a CSCS card was a handy extra!

Helen

Helen Simpson joined the RAF as a Physical Training Instructor (PTI) in Jan 90 and subsequently specialised as an Adventurous Training Instructor (ATI) and Parachute Jumping Instructor (PJI). In 2003, she attained an RAF commission as a Physical Education Officer (PEdO) and continued working under the PJI specialisation. She left the RAF in April 2013 after 23 years and utilised my ELCs to gain a C&G Level 3 Dog Grooming qualification then went on to run her business for a few years. She then utilised the RAF ‘ Free Degree’ scheme to study French and Philosophy with the Open University for the next 3 years.

In 2018, she re-joined under the VeRR scheme, then in 2019 went FTRS after promotion to Sqn Ldr. She spent the next 3 years as OC RAF Weston on the Green, managing the JSAT Parachuting Centre. She retired for a second time in Jan 23 and after discussing her resettlement plans with the Education Centre, she was informed that she could utilise her SLC (£175) + £45 of personal funding to pay for what is essentially a £3,000 ‘House Maintenance’ course. The course would last 5 weeks and students would learn the basics of bricklaying, rendering, plaster boarding, plastering, tiling, plumbing, painting and decorating - and also gain formal qualifications in the process. As someone who was planning to build their own summer house and potting shed, this seemed to be an excellent way of utilising her ELC.

_{Helen said: "Having now finished the course, I can testify that this is one of the most practical and useful courses I have ever completed. Applying for the course was simple and the Joining Instructions, etc were all easy to understand. Throughly enjoyable, all the different skills are taught at the most basic level so everyone understands them on both a theoretical and practical level - then the skills build on a daily basis. The instruction is outstanding; all levels of ‘understanding’ are attended to appropriately - from helping those with learning difficulties, right through to advising those who already have some experience of one or more of the skills."}

Helen's plan is to use her training around her own home, garden, and allotment. However, she also intends to share the skills she has learnt with members of the local Mental Health Charity Organisations.

Hattie

Hattie recently graduated from the Construction Skills course. Over the month, she got to try her hand at Brickwork, Carpentry, Tiling, Painting & Decorating, Plastering, Plumbing and General Maintenance. She now has her CSCS General Operative Card, L1 Health & Safety in a Construction Environment and a L1 Diploma in Construction Multi Skills.

_{Hattie said: "I am really happy to add some more stings to my bow and get some fancy paper for it this time too! Thank you for running such a useful and well thought out course. I am very appreciative I had the opportunity to attend, particularly as I'd given up on believing "veteran" was worth anything prior. And much gratitude to our fantastic instructor Stanley Smith (Vision West Nottinghamshire College) who created the perfect balance of a relaxed environment but excellent work standards!"}

#InternationalWomensDay