A determined mother from Rochdale is breaking the mould by securing a job in the construction sector, thanks to local labour in construction initiative, J21, supported by the Oldham Rochdale Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder.
Michaela Brown, aged 32 is currently studying part-time at University Centre Oldham (UCO) and hopes to become a Quantity Surveyor. Michaela has secured employment with Housing Market Renewal contractor Artisan Construction.
Michaela, a mother of two, lives in Syke, Rochdale. She spent four years working for Rochdale Boroughwide Housing as an administrator in the technical department and got interested in construction after working on the Decent Homes programme.
She then decided to enrol on a part-time construction diploma at The Oldham College. Having successfully completed this with a distinction, she was motivated to progress onto the Higher National Certificate at UCO.
Michaela said, “I’m highly motivated and enthusiastic. The job I’ve secured with Artisan is really rewarding, I really enjoy it and the company is very professional. Everything I’m learning is relevant to the job. I’ll soon be working on the flagship Dale Mill development and be part of a multi-million scheme that will transform housing in Rochdale.
Lisa Bowden - Community Regeneration Manager, BASE, the HMR developer for East Central Rochdale said “Michaela is highly enthusiastic and demonstrates a positive can do attitude, as a result she secured employment through J21. Michaela will be a real asset to the Artisan team, her local knowledge will help strengthen the project even further for the benefit of the local community’.
Over the past two years, J21 has secured employment for over 100 people and invested over £300,000 on training local residents. Sarfraz Arfan, J21 Manager commented, “The industry is suffering from a skills shortage, in particular at management and technical levels. Given the scale of development due to take place, one of our core objectives is to work in partnership with education establishments and the industry, to identify the future workforce and help them onto the first rung of the career ladder. Michaela is a fine example, she is determined to succeed and it is because of this that J21 did not hesitate to assist her. She’s an inspiration and a role model for others to follow; I wish we had more people of her calibre”.