Careers in regeneration promoted in new scheme

A new scheme to ‘inspire a new, diverse generation of young people into property and regeneration’ has been backed by Homes England.

The organisation has become a trustee of the Regeneration Brainery, which pairs 16-21-year-olds with well-known mentors from across the industry.

Following a successful pilot last summer, Homes England sponsored 2018’s programme, and the first week-long ‘brainery’ took place in Manchester over Easter. There will be two further events in other city centre locations later this year.

Homes England say it is part of a drive to ‘challenge perceptions of regeneration, promoting people from a diverse array of backgrounds to play a role in shaping our towns and cities.’

Mentors include property developers, investors, local authority figures including chief Executives, project managers, agents, planners, designers,  architects, and marketers.

Nick Walkley, chief executive of Homes England, said: ‘Creating vibrant new places and providing quality homes for people should be hugely inspiring career choices. Unfortunately, the opposite is true and as an industry we’re really struggling to attract young people to replace those who are retiring in the next few years. The housing crisis is as much a skills crisis.

‘So, we need to work much harder and smarter to change perceptions of our industry and show how we’re making it more diverse, more modern and more progressive for young people who want to build a career while contributing to society.

‘I’m determined that the new Homes England will show real leadership on these issues, so we didn’t hesitate to support the Regeneration Brainery, which is a brilliant, innovative scheme with real potential.’

Tim Heatley, co-founder of property developer Capital & Centric said: ‘If we’re to going to push the boundaries of how our cities and towns grow in the future, we need new ideas and creative thinkers. The launch of the Regeneration Brainery is timely, given the ongoing conversations about equality and diversity across almost every industry in the UK – especially property. There’s a lot of people accepting there’s a challenge, but few practical ideas of how to bring about change.

‘For me, widening the pool of talent coming into the industry is essential. Doing so will bring fresh experiences; viewpoints; ideas and solutions. It’ll mean our built environments start to better reflect the people living in their communities – and that’s to be championed.

‘We’re chuffed Homes England are our first trustee. The Brainery is a practical way to fire up young people to aspiring to a career in regeneration.’