Member Article

Building careers! Barratt Developments North East celebrates graduate scheme success

Local housebuilder, Barratt Developments North East, which includes the Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes brands, has recently employed two new graduates, as part of its commitment to help a new generation of talent build long and successful careers, through its unique graduate scheme.

The 2019 ASPIRE graduate programme attracted incredible interest with 3,096 applications. Of these, 18 candidates were selected for a range of roles available across the business, with two graduates based in the North East region this year.

As part of the two-year programme, graduates will be spending time rotating through every department in the organisation to gain broad business exposure and a full understanding of the company. In addition to working on real time practical projects, every graduate is allocated one-to-one mentoring from one of the housebuilder’s directors to support their progression throughout their time on the programme.

Since the launch of the ASPIRE programme in 2007, the housebuilder has recruited 243 graduates across the country, many of which have progressed with the FTSE-100 company, including Carl Sobolewski, the Managing Director of the North East division who joined the business as a graduate in 2007, as well as 42 middle managers across the Group.

22-year-old Richard Shingleton is just one of Barratt Developments’ 2019 sales and marketing graduates, who recently graduated from Northumbria University. Partaking in a two year course, comprised of six, eight-week rotations across different departments within the business, Richard will be undertaking both practical and theory work, including regular site visits and training days to gain a deep understanding of the business as a whole.

Also benefiting from the graduate scheme is 23-year-old Charles Boyes, who recently completed a Masters in Real Estate at Northumbria University. Charles is a land graduate on the ASPIRE graduate programme, a rotational role spread across land and planning, technical, commercial, construction, sales and marketing, and finance during his first year, before progressing to specialise in a chosen discipline for 12-months in his second year of the scheme.

Carl Sobolewski, Managing Director at Barratt Developments North East, commented: “We’re always on the lookout for the next generation of leaders to keep us at the forefront of the construction industry. Having first-hand experience of the graduate programme myself, I know how valuable this unique experience is. I started my career with Barratt Developments 12 years ago as a finance graduate and have worked in various roles across the business right up to becoming Managing Director earlier this year. The opportunities for progression within the business are definitely there for anyone wishing to pursue a career in the industry. We look forward to seeing Richard, Charles and all of this year’s graduates develop their knowledge and implement their skills with us!”

This year, the housebuilder is supporting the employment of approximately 2,845 people in the North East, as well as offering 31 apprenticeship, graduate and trainee opportunities.

Barratt Developments was awarded five stars in the new Home Builders Federation (HBF) annual customer satisfaction survey, marking the 10th year in a row that Barratt Developments has been awarded five stars.

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