Bellway has won the Best Staff Development Award at a prestigious national housebuilding awards ceremony.

The housebuilder was presented with the accolade at the Housebuilder Awards 2024 during a gala event at the InterContinental London – The O2 on Thursday 31 October.

Bellway was picked as the winner from a shortlist of five finalists by a panel of expert judges from the housebuilding industry. The company’s entry – entitled ‘A workplace where everyone is welcome’ – outlined Bellway’s pathway towards being an Employer of Choice, which is an integral priority of its innovative long-term sustainability strategy, Better with Bellway.

Bellway trainee assistant site manager Sophie Curtis was also highly commended in the Housebuilder Star category at the event. As well as demonstrating dedication towards her bricklaying apprenticeship, she has encouraged other young women to consider a career in construction and supported other apprentices working in the industry.

Heidi Khoshtaghaza, Bellway Group HR Director, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have won the prestigious Best Staff Development accolade at the Housebuilder Awards for the second year in a row. At Bellway, we are totally committed to creating a people-first culture which embraces equality, diversity and inclusion and this award is recognition of the achievements we have made and the vision we are working towards.

“The genuine changes and advances that we have made as a company are only achieved through the participation of our staff and I would like to thank all of my colleagues for embracing the challenge to create a better workplace for everyone. It is an example of teamwork at its best.

“We are proud that since 2022 the voluntary turnover rate at Bellway has reduced from 25.7 per cent to 18.3 per cent this year – and we feel that this is in no small part due to the fact that we are creating an inclusive working environment where everyone feels engaged and can go on to realise their full potential.

“I’d also like to congratulate Sophie on being highly commended in the Housebuilder Star category. She consistently goes above and beyond what is expected of her, to learn, and develop, and to encourage others to do the same – she is a fantastic ambassador for everything we do at Bellway.”

Under the overarching Better with Bellway initiative, which was launched two years ago, Bellway has introduced a number of new bespoke programmes to foster an inclusive workplace, including inclusion hiring training for people managers across the business.

Improvements to family-friendly policies and flexible working have also been introduced to make life easier for employees.

A mental health first aid programme, run internally, has trained employees to be mental health advocates, while there has also been a focus on mental health awareness training across the company.

Through partnership with the Leonard Cheshire’s Change 100 Programme, Bellway has provided paid work placements to promote social mobility and disability diversity, while the company has also set targets to increase the ethnic diversity of both its workforce and within senior roles.

For more information about job opportunities and careers at Bellway visit  https://www.bellwaycareers.co.uk/.