One in four UK workers are said to be planning a job change – but at what age would you consider a complete career change?
Any age is the answer from assistant site manager Wayne MCleod! Now 49, he is embarking on a career in construction site management, having switched from a lifelong career in warehousing to working for us – and he says it’s the best move he’s ever made.
“Looking back, I only wish I’d done it sooner. I love working on site and being outdoors and I love meeting and chatting to Redrow customers and providing a high level of customer care. I’ve never missed a day’s work at Redrow, I even enjoy my commute as I love coming to work every day.”
Wayne, from Preston, left school at 16 with few professional qualifications and worked in warehouses for over 20 years. He decided a couple of years ago it was time for a career change and obtained his forklift licence before being placed, by chance, on a Redrow development through an agency.
He said: “In some jobs, you’re just a number. But I feel that Redrow really look after you. From the day I started as a forklift driver, the people at Redrow really supported me. I knew I was good at my job and felt valued. One day the area construction manager offered me the chance to become an assistant site manager. I have just completed my NVQ level four in site supervision and would like to become a site manager one day. I’m often first on site in the morning as I like to get here early and open the plots for the trades.”
Wayne has just completed his mental health first aider training, one of a range of courses offered through our in-house training centre. He also requested to attend a managing safely course, which we promptly agreed to and funded.
He said: “I guess at school I was classed as a ‘bad kid’ but I was never shown that success could be achieved in a career like this. I left school with two exam passes – in maths and English. I felt for many years like I was in the wilderness in warehouses – now I have my dream job!”
His ambition is to become a qualified site manager.
He added: “I was paid the biggest compliment recently when I asked my 16-year-old stepdaughter what she’d like to do when she left school and she said she might like to drive forklift trucks on building sites.”
Wayne advocates for our apprentice scheme but also believes that you can retrain at any age and learning new skills is certainly not reserved for younger age groups.
Another colleague Michael Deegan, 44, also switched from a career in sales to construction, while staying with a company he loved working for. For almost seven years he was selling homes for our Lancashire division, he is now building them having left his role as a sales consultant to become a trainee site assistant.
Dad-of-two Michael, from Marple, Stockport, felt the switch would give him more scope for a better work life balance and working on site appealed to him.
He said: “I’d been in sales for a while and felt like I’d achieved a lot, including winning sales consultant of the year. I enjoyed it but I was looking for a new challenge. The Covid pandemic and being on furlough for around two months gave me time to reassess and think about what I really wanted from my career.
“I knew wanted to stay within Redrow as I know what a great company it is to work for and they’ve always really looked after me and made me feel like a valued member of the team.
“I’d done my management training and at my annual review I decided to raise the prospect of moving into construction. I’d always enjoyed being out on site, checking plots and customer choices, so it felt like a natural move.”
Prior to joining the new homes sector, Michael worked in customer services and on cruise ships. He has only been working on site at Bridgewater View for three weeks and has already begun his NHBC-approved training for a NVQ level four in site supervision.
He added: “I feel good everyday coming into work. Already it feels like a good move, I’ve no regrets and hopefully I’ll have a long career ahead and one day become a site manager.”
Claire Jarvis, managing director for Lancashire, said: “We often focus on attracting school and university leavers into construction careers, but Wayne and Michael have proved that you can begin a successful and enjoyable career in our industry at any age. They are hugely valued members of the team and a real asset to the Lancashire division. Bringing experience from other sectors means we have a mix of skills and approaches on site, which makes for a really strong team.”
We offer a variety of development opportunities for those who want to progress their careers with a forward-thinking company, including apprenticeships, graduate training programmes and bespoke training like the trainee site assistant course.
For more information about careers with us visit www.redrowplc.co.uk/careers.
To find out more about the homes Wayne and Michael are building at Bridgewater View see www.redrow.co.uk/bridgewater
