Winner: Rebecca Lovelace – Building People
Rebecca Lovelace describes herself as ‘founder and chief dot-joiner’ at Building People. It is a platform she created in 2017 to link people from under-represented groups to career opportunities in construction.
The idea is that people from diverse backgrounds have better access to jobs, knowledge and support. As a result, the industry has a chance to be more representative of the communities it serves.
Rebecca has worked tirelessly to develop Building People. From 2021 it really gained traction, with nearly 400 organisations registered and a ‘communities network’ of 50 organisations that benefit from the amplifying opportunities that Building People provides. Organisations such as Building Heroes, which represents ex-military people, DiverseCity Surveyors, which works with BAME people and The Rebuild Project, representing women, have a louder voice through Building People.
Presence at events
Rebecca has provided community network members with a presence at events such as London Build, UK Construction Week and UK Real Estate Infrastructure and Investment Forum (UKREiiF). At UKREiiF, for example, in May 2022, she secured 26 speakers from the Building People network to deliver a series of ‘How to’ sessions on increasing diversity across the built environment.
Other finalists
Amos Simbo BPIC Network
Saheb Dhesi DGP Logistics
A significant example of Rebecca’s influence was her response to the Construction Leadership Council’s (CLC’s) 2021 skills plan, in which she highlighted the lack of EDI focus. She was subsequently invited to join the CLC, where she successfully lobbied for a significant reference to EDI in the updated plan published in April 2022, as well as inclusion of career changers and returners and a public commitment to a plan to increase diversity across the industry.
Rebecca has put huge amounts of passion, energy, drive and leadership into developing Building People. In doing so, she has created a way for the hundreds of small organisations in construction which support people from non-traditional backgrounds to collaborate and be more effective.
