Member Article

Father and son bricklayers team up with Barratt

Barratt Developments Yorkshire East, which encompasses the David Wilson Homes and Barratt Homes brands, has been working with father and son bricklayers, Sean Atkinson Snr and Sean Atkinson Jnr from Doncaster, on housing projects across the region as part of meeting the Government’s pledge to boost the housebuilding industry by building more homes.

With 58% of SMEs finding it difficult to hire bricklayers[1] and with Yorkshire alone needing 3,230 new skilled workers every year[2] in order to combat the housing shortage, it’s encouraging to see Sean Snr nurturing his son’s development within the profession.

Whilst Sean Snr, 50, has worked with Barratt Developments Yorkshire East for seven years, his son, Sean Jnr, started his career when he began his apprenticeship with the housebuilder in September 2016. They are now both working together on the Belle Vue site in Doncaster, which will be Sean Jnr’s first project since starting his apprenticeship.

Sean Jnr, 16, commented: “While the idea of following in your father’s footsteps might seem like a thing of the past, that is exactly what I wanted to do. I’d learnt a lot of the basics from my dad, but the Barratt apprenticeship scheme is allowing me to refine my skills and really progress my development. Being able to put into practice everything I’ve learnt on the scheme by working on the Belle Vue development means I’m learning a lot quicker and able to better support my dad!”

After over three decades in the industry, Sean Snr has seen a lot of change within the bricklaying profession, but believes apprenticeships are the right way forward. He commented: “Over the years I’ve noticed a lack of awareness of the profession, which has meant that the number of skilled workers has decreased. I think it’s our responsibility to encourage young people looking to enter the industry and to give them the tools to develop their skills, which my son has experienced with Barratt’s apprenticeship scheme.

“I think there should be more apprenticeships available for young people as it is definitely the way to improve the skills shortage in the industry.”

Steve Mattinson, Construction Director at Barratt Developments Yorkshire East, said: “Apprentices like Sean Jnr are absolutely the future of the industry, so providing support to the next generation of skilled workers is a priority for us. We’re extremely proud of our apprenticeship scheme and the talented team members that have passed through it and stayed with the company over the years. We have taken on a total of 48 apprentices over the last 10 years, helping all of these people with their first step into their career in housebuilding. There is much discussion about the lack of skills within the industry and more definitely needs to be done, but we feel we’re playing a small but vital part in addressing this gap and setting up our staff for years of success. Having done an apprenticeship with Barratt myself and working my way up, I can’t recommend it more.

Barratt Developments’ Apprenticeship Programme has been recognised by industry bodies as the best of its kind in recent years including the CITB Apprenticeship Awards, the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers, and National Apprenticeship Service’s BT Macro Employer of the Year Award.

Barratt Yorkshire East is always on the look out for new bricklayers across Yorkshire. Get in touch with the construction department at York on 01904 617 660 for more information.

For more information on careers with Barratt Developments, please visit http://www.barrattfuturetalent.co.uk/

[1] https://www.fmb.org.uk/media/32421/state-of-trade-q4_2016_digi.pdf

[2] http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/need-tackle-skills-gap-construction-industry/story-29338049-detail/story.html

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Richard Savage .