My career in Progress | Shaun, Lead Tradesperson

What's it like to work at Progress Housing Group?

Our people say we're a fantastic place to work. That, here at Progress Housing Group, we are 'friendly', that we 'value' our colleagues, and that they feel that they are empowered to 'make a difference'.

If this sounds like the kind of place you want to work, a career in Progress Housing Group is one you won't regret.

Shaun is one of the Group's lead labourers. Shaun tells us more about his job and his hopes for his future career.

"I started working at the Group approximately 15 months ago now. Before this, I worked for myself. After starting my family, working for the Group has given me more stability. I've now got access to different benefits such as Medicash and holiday and sick pay, and an annual leave allowance, which you don't really get when working for yourself! Working as part of a team also makes a positive difference as well.

I really enjoy my job. The building trade is my forte, and I enjoy all aspects of the work, especially the variety of projects and jobs I can get involved with. Being a labourer means you're not tied down to just one skill; you can go out with almost every other trade and pick up new skills. I'm constantly learning something new every day in this role.

There are so many friendly faces here at Progress, and what I like about my team is that people are listened to, and your opinions and ideas based on your knowledge, skills and experience are respected and considered. New ideas and approaches are welcomed. For example, I was out on a job with our plumbers and suggested an underground drainage system, potentially creating a cost-saving for the Group.

Working for a housing association also gives you a sense of accomplishment that you can go and help out in the community and see first-hand how your work can positively affect our tenants. Being customer-facing, you see how people's faces and demeanours change from when you first turn up to when you've finished the work and they're happy with the job. I like making someone's day in that way!

I've always been the type of person to not just stick to doing the minimum; I like doing a good job and then getting stuck into working with the other trades as part of the project to understand the bigger picture and help out. It's really great to know that my managers have the confidence in me to do that."

"In the future, I'd like to progress my career at Progress and eventually have the opportunity to train as a plumber and become fully multi-skilled across all the trades.

"It's great that at Progress, I feel like that's a real possibility."

Famously Proud to be Progress

Our teams come from a variety of backgrounds bringing a wealth of knowledge, skills and experiences to the Group, and we've got one thing in common - we are immensely proud and passionate about changing lives.

Every day our team of almost 900 colleagues rise to the challenge of delivering high-quality homes and related services that make a real difference in our communities and to the people who live in them.

As one team, we work together and empower and support each other, to ensure we do everything we can to make a positive difference.

Thanks to Shaun for sharing his career journey with us so far.