Women In Property: Lessons Learnt from Modular Construction

We are delighted to host a joint event with Women in Property South West, on the lessons learnt from modular construction. Kindly hosted by Simmons & Simmons, the morning will start with breakfast and networking, followed by a panel discussion, chaired by Fadiya Ahmed.

The UK has seen a steady rise in off-site construction methods in recent years due to its several advantages e.g. reduced build time and cost, improvement in safety and reduction in material wastage. As a result, the policy makers are now turning towards off site production as one of the ways to tackle the housing crisis and increase housing delivery. We are delighted to be joined by expert panellists who will further discuss the pros and lessons learnt from modular construction.

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SPEAKERS

Featured

Fadiya Ahmed, Senior Project Manager, Whitehead Allen

Fadiya Ahmed is a Senior Project Manager at Whitehead Allen, a project management and quantity surveying firm in Bristol. She is also a general committee member of the Women in Property (WIP) South West committee.

Fadiya started her career as a civil engineer and is therefore passionate to learn about modern methods of construction especially modular construction as it is definitely one of the housing solutions that is fit for future and crucial in tackling the UK’s ongoing housing crisis.

Rosie Toogood, CEO, Legal & General Modular Homes

Based at our factory in Leeds, Rosie is CEO of the Modular Homes business leading the team in developing the product portfolio, creating engineering and production capability, and establishing our market position. Rosie joined L&G in June 2017 from Rolls-Royce where she held senior roles across customer-facing business areas, new product introduction and in setting up global supply chains to deliver complex engineering products.

Prior to joining Rolls-Royce, Rosie trained with Ernst & Young as a Chartered Accountant, holds an MBA in Strategy and Procurement, and a degree in Chemistry & Materials. She also served for eight years as a non-executiveBoard member of Derwent Housing Association.

Oona Goldsworthy, CEO, Brunel Care

Oona is passionate about the role that housing can play in shaping cities and supporting residents and communities to become more resilient which comes together under the banner of ‘More Than’.

As well as being Chief Executive, Oona is a Trustee of Bristol Hospitality Network for Refugees. In 2017 she was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to research global approach’s to housing millennials.

Ben Adams, Value Prop Leader, Precision Manufacturing at Arcadis

Ben Adams has a degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Imperial College, 17 years with Atkins, 2 years with Space Engineering and 5 years with Arcadis. He has leadership experience covering a range of sectors including renewable energy, nuclear, defence, aerospace, rail, retail construction and modular housing.

Mike De’Ath, BA (Hons) Dip Arch RIBA, Partner HTA Design LLP

Mike is a Partner at HTA Design LLP, a design led, multi disciplinary consultancy to the housing and regeneration sector.

He has extensive experience of working to develop successful new build and regeneration solutions that maximise value for both the client and the end user and is responsible for the delivery of several major regeneration projects throughout the UK. He advises on schemes involving cross-subsidy and new funding models, where value generation is key to the programmes' success.

Mike chaired a Housing Forum enquiry into the future funding and delivery of low cost homes for social rent resulting in the publication 'Making a Place for Low Cost Housing'. He also champions the emerging Market Rent and 'Multifamily' development in the UK and promotes the virtues of offsite manufacture and modular approaches to supplement the delivery of the homes the country needs.

He has been involved in a range of community-based regeneration projects, including successful ballots for six estate transfers as well as major private/public partnerships. As well as delivery of great homes and places, he is keen to promote the notion of a wider approach to ensure economic and social regeneration opportunities for local people and is currently establishing new ways to promote this aim through ‘Beyond Boundaries’, a social mobility network.

In his spare time he has completed over twenty years in non- executive roles on housing association boards’ and is currently a Trustee of the Haringey Play Association (HarPA) working with young people in Tottenham.

He was elected to the board of the Housing Forum in March 2016 where he advocates for the delivery of great buildings and sustainable placemaking that transform environments and the lives of current and future communities.

Jez Sweetland, Project Director, Bristol Housing Festival

Jez Sweetland is an experienced leader and has managed and initiated change and strategic development in a variety of settings and has worked across a wide range of key stakeholder relationships. He has led both corporate and charitable organisations and enjoyed the challenge of setting and achieving a mission (in partnership with others), affecting culture change and developing relationships.

He is resourceful, emotionally intelligent, entrepreneurial and has excellent organisational and communication skills. In previous job roles he acted as the CEO of Guildhall Chambers, a Barristers Chambers in Bristol, and CEO of a charitable national skills training organisation. His working career started in law where he qualified as a solicitor with Eversheds and then moved to Berwin Leighton Paisner in London where he spent nearly 4 years in their corporate finance department working on M&A transactions and a mix of private equity and public listings.

On leaving private legal practice he spent several years in broader management roles including setting up the operations of a new think tank before moving into his first CEO role.

Jez lives in Bristol, with his wife and 3 children (aged 12,8 and 8).