Two award-winning site managers working in Derbyshire promoted to construction manager

Neil O’Grady and Paul Matthews have taken up their new positions at the housebuilder’s East Midlands divisional office.

Between them, the pair will be responsible for the running of eight Bellway sites across the region.

Neil, 30, was most recently the senior site manager at Bellway’s Coppice Heights development in Ripley, a site he will continue to oversee in his new role.

Paul, 57, was previously the site manager at Hartshorne View, a development being built by Bellway’s sister brand Ashberry homes in the Derbyshire village of Hartshorne.

Father of three Neil joined Bellway after spending three years selling men’s clothes at a city centre fashion store.

He said: “I knew absolutely nothing about the construction industry but was fed up selling clothes and had friends who worked in the business and they encouraged me to give it a go. I joined as a trainee assistant site manager in 2013 and loved it right from the start.

“I worked really hard, put my heart and soul into the job and was made an assistant site manager within 18 months. I continued to put in the effort and hours and was promoted to site manager in 2019. I was incredibly lucky to be given a chance by Bellway but I have grabbed that with both hands and made it work for me.”

Neil won a National House Building Council (NHBC) Pride in the Job Quality Award in 2019, 2020 and 2021 in recognition of the high quality of workmanship and attention to detail at the developments he was running. He was made senior site manager at Coppice Heights after moving to the site in 2021.

He said: “As a senior site manager my role was to oversee the day-to-day running of the development to ensure we were producing top-quality new homes on a safe site where all the customers are happy. My new role as construction manager means I am responsible for four sites. If the site managers have a problem they come to me and I have to try to find a solution to keep everything on track. It’s a massive challenge but one I am relishing.”

Paul, a father-of-two and a grandfather-of-one, left school at 16 and qualified as a toolmaker after a four-year apprenticeship. He later trained to be an electrician before joining Bellway in 2015.

“As a domestic electrician, I was crawling through a loft at a customer’s house at the age of 50 when I thought to myself: ‘Is this what I want to be doing for the next 15 years or so?’ The answer to that question was no, so I decided it was time for a career change.

“I thought my skills would transfer well into the construction industry so I applied to Bellway for a job and was accepted as an assistant site manager. The job really suited me and thanks to my dedication and people skills, I got results. I was made site manager in April 2019 and took over the reins at Hartshorne View in 2021.”

Paul won an NHBC Pride in the Job Quality Award in 2020.

“As a site manager you are totally focused on that development, to the exclusion of all else, but now I am construction manager I have a much wider overarching role which takes in all of the issues that may crop up from four developments,” said Paul. “The level of responsibility has been ramped up but I am delighted that Bellway have put their faith in me and I intend to repay that by delivering.”

Lee Wilkinson, Construction Director at Bellway East Midlands, said: “Neil and Paul have repeatedly proved themselves to be inspirational leaders who know how to get the best out of their teams and these promotions are richly deserved.

“Neil came into the industry as a complete novice but has proved to be a natural in the role of site manager. His dedication, enthusiasm and calm manner have seen him rise through the ranks within the company. Paul is an award-winning site manager who has incredible inter-personal skills and the ability to solve problems with a minimum of fuss.

“We had no hesitation in promoting both Neil and Paul to construction managers and we are sure they will lead Bellway East Midlands to greater success in the future.”

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