EQUALITY & DIVERSITY


roles in the workplace. As a result of our efforts, of all the roles within the property space (such as soft FM, estate management, and engineering), 35% are now held by women, with a similar percentage in ‘tech’ (e.g. cloud security / engineers, analysts, and service operation) – a huge leap from just 5% in 2018. I am incredibly proud of our success so far, but, of course, there is still more to be done.


Making the industry an attractive proposition To make these changes, we have focused on making the industry an attractive proposition for those at the start of their careers by strengthening our graduate programmes and apprenticeship opportunities. Our ‘Stepping Stones’ apprenticeship scheme, sponsored by the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management, offers a structured training programme in facilities management to frontline (non-clinical) colleagues, giving them the ‘Stepping Stones’ to be successful and progress in their career. For National Apprenticeship Week this year, we were recognised by Train Together as one of three Employers of the Year, going above and beyond to support the learning and development of our employees. To invest in the development of


women specifically, we talk openly and are transparent about career pathways and opportunities. Our ‘smarter working’ policy has encouraged women back into the workplace throughout the COVID pandemic. Our leadership training focuses on how we can get women into more senior roles – currently women make up 54% of our employees at NHSPS, but a disproportionate number of men are in senior leadership positions. We are leveraging both technical and leadership qualifications, and managing and coaching skills to improve the confidence of women, who can often feel like imposters in a male dominated environment. We have also established our very first Female Leadership network to support their career development and success.


Levelling the playing field I learnt early on in my career that as a woman, if I wanted to be successful, I needed to let the work speak for itself. I remember vividly a conversation with my boss; instead of being the person who automatically defaulted to offering to make the tea in a meeting attended by senior men, I needed to sit at the table and make my voice heard. The playing field must be levelled, which is why I have asked two women who work for NHSPS – Jo Tuck and Sally Tombs – to also share their stories (see adjacent panel).


62 Health Estate Journal August 2022 Jo Tuck


Senior Construction manager, East Region


“I have never planned to break the bias, but through delivering in my work I come to do this every day. Construction is traditionally a male industry, but being a woman in construction is becoming more and more common. Take a project I have recently delivered – the investment was just over £2 m, and the project team was mainly women. “I just seemed fall into construction – I


started out as a personal trainer, then worked on the building site at Heathrow


Terminal 5, which I really enjoyed. I’ve always been better at fixing things than people, and very much a fan of hard hats and boots, so when I noticed a vacancy in the East for construction, I went for it. “It is the conversations you sometimes notice. Contractors will still talk to male colleagues


if I am with them, even though I am the one leading the project – and yet in conversation with a customer, customers will often speak to women. Construction is a great industry to be in, and I wouldn’t want women to not want to join because they’re worried about working in a male- dominated industry.”


Sally Tombs Principal Operations manager


“I was unsure what to do after university, so I joined the civil service as a graduate, and ‘fell’ into a facilities manager (FM) role. I love the variety of FM, and the broad spectrum of people that I get to interact with every day. Early on in my FM career, I attended a meeting for a construction project on one of my sites, and was the only female in the room – not something that was unusual or bothered me. One of my peers, the Project manager, started barking orders at me, asking me to write down notes and actions, and taking no notice of my opinions as the Building manager. I stopped the meeting, stepped outside with him, and asked him why he was asking me to do his job for him, telling him that if he wanted my help, he could respectfully ask me, rather than assume I would act as his assistant. He looked suitably embarrassed, and apologised. This is a small thing, but it has stuck in my mind over the years. I sensed that he was treating me differently. I told myself that, going forward, I wouldn’t allow that to happen; I would call out that type of behaviour, and I would always treat people equally and respectfully. “When conversations get more


‘‘


technical, people can ‘divert’ to the man. We talk in our values about respecting our colleagues, so it’s about calling out that behaviour when it happens. You feel stronger for doing that, addressing


the smaller things – and it has taught me about being respectful – you don’t know what other people’s qualifications are. “I was lucky to grow up in a household with a strong female role model; my mum was a headteacher who later became a magistrate. She was strict,


but fair, and encouraged us to challenge ourselves and always work hard. “My first boss was also very tough, and taught me how to be strong and believe in myself. There have also been male role models that have taught me the same. I have been lucky to work with some amazing teams, and supportive, inspiring managers, who have helped me to grow and progress along the way. I think these role models have been hugely important throughout my career, and have motivated me to become a role model for others. “In my management role today, we’ve


put three of my frontline domestic staff through the Stepping Stones programme to try to open their eyes to see what is possible. They had joined NHSPS to do a part-time, domestic role, and have now developed within the team to take on leadership opportunities. The Stepping Stones programme places particular emphasis on presentation skills, so I mentored the staff to offer advice for their first ever presentation. It’s amazing to see how confident they are as an outcome of the programme, and that they can see a pathway to develop at NHSPS, potentially towards FM roles.”


“When conversations get more technical, people can ‘divert’ to the man. We talk in our values about respecting our colleagues, so it’s about calling out that behaviour when it happens”


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