Member Article

New Social Enterprise Company Secures Prestigious Contract

A social enterprise company which has recently been launched with the aim of providing practical learning experiences and sustainable careers for young people in the fields of construction and property maintenance has secured a prestigious contract with housing association Home Group.

4041 is the only company offering this approach to training support in the region. Its board of directors is passionate about helping young people to gain the practical experience necessary to launch a successful career and also grow the business by harnessing the skills and abilities of these young people for long term projects.

The project secured by 4041, the total refurbishment of a Grade II Listed building in St Thomas Crescent in Newcastle city centre, will take eight weeks to complete. A four-storey Georgian terraced house, it forms part of Home Group’s extensive property portfolio and has been standing empty for some time.

As Home Group expects full planning consent imminently, initially the 4041 team will begin with some minor decommissioning works. The project will allow 4041 employees to gain additional experience to assist their already developing skills across all the construction trades including roofing, plastering, tiling, painting and decorating, heating and plumbing and electrical works.

Wendy Berry, Home Group’s interim head of product and service design who is responsible for the design and implementation of the Home Group Apprenticeship Programme, was keen to find a way to work with 4041. She said:

“After hearing about the vision for 4041 and the great opportunities that the directors are securing for the trainees we felt that theSt Thomas Crescentproject would give them a super opportunity to showcase their skills and training as well as gain further experience.

“We know that 4041 plans to increase its number of employees and apprentices and has indicated that we could promote these vacancies to Home Group customers, so I would love to see us continue to provide this type of opportunity for training.”

Rosemary Du Rose, Home Group’s executive director of customer service, said: “It’s very important for us to not only build high quality homes, but to create thriving communities and offering our customers the chance of employment and a step onto the career ladder is one way we can achieve this.”

With a number of smaller domestic and commercial construction projects already underway, the team at 4041 is proud and excited about beginning work on such a prestigious project for Home Group, as newly appointed construction director, Peter Galbraith, explains:

“We are thrilled to have picked up a project like this which will provide so many superb learning opportunities for our trainees.

“By appointing 4041, customers are not only guaranteed a quality job but at the same time, can take satisfaction from knowing that they are giving young people a chance to get the experience needed to launch their careers, so it is a win-win situation.

“All our work is pre-quoted, often in competition with established building firms, which we are more than competitive with on price, attitude and responsiveness. Because the employees are in training, they can sometimes take a little longer to complete certain tasks, so projects such as this, where the building is unoccupied, provide the ideal opportunity for gaining experience and embedding their skills.

“All contracts are supervised day to day by experienced tradesmen who act as mentors. In this way, all of our employees will be able to complete the on-site work they require to gain their NVQs as they rotate through each of the trades needed for the job.

“We hope that with a successful conclusion to this project, there will be other opportunities for us to work together in the future.”

4041 works with training provider, Trade Training Associates who have been noted for their learner focused approach to training which suits 4041’s development needs.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Leigh Chelton .