Publication Date: 18-10-2022 09:00
New talent brought into land buying team at Bellway West Midlands
Homebuilder Bellway has boosted the land acquisition team in its West Midlands division with the appointments of a new land manager and graduate.
Ben Rees, 25, from Birmingham, has started work with the division as a land manager, while Simran Sambhi, 21, has joined the company on its graduate scheme.
The pair are the latest recruits to join the land team at the Tamworth-based division, which is currently building at sites across Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire, Derbyshire and the West Midlands.
Ben, from Birmingham, comes to Bellway after five years at Lovell Partnerships, where he worked his way up to the position of land manager in January this year having previously held trainee and assistant roles. During his time there he completed a sponsored foundation degree in construction management.
He was keen to work for Bellway after seeing the company make a series of important land acquisitions.
He said: “It is a growing company and I see it as an opportunity to come and grow with them.”
Working in land acquisition appeals to him partly because of the variety the career offers.
He said: “No two sites are the same, and there are always different approaches.”
In his new role he will manage progress from the earliest stages of a possible purchase to a completed acquisition for a housing development. He is looking forward to further building his network within and outside the company.
“I like taking the site from inception, seeing it through and within a few years of purchasing see it come to fruition,” he said.
Ben says he feels a sense of satisfaction when he sees a development on land that he has been involved in acquiring.
“You feel proud when you see a site that you remember perhaps as an old factory and now people are living there and enjoying it.”
Simran, 21, from Birmingham, joined the company after completing her degree in geography and urban planning at the University of Birmingham this summer.
She enrolled on Bellway’s graduate scheme, which allows candidates to work in a variety of departments – from construction to customer care - to get an all-round experience of the business.
The two-year programme involves a rotation system in which those taking part can work in at least five areas, although they can do more if they wish. It allows recruits to find out how the various departments operate and decide on which area they want to pursue.
The set-up suited Simran as she is keen to find out more before committing to a specialism, although she knew she wanted to work in the housing sector as she enjoyed the planning aspects of her degree course and has several relatives who work in the industry.
“I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do, and this programme allows me to venture off and try things but stay within the one company,” she said.
After working in land acquisition over the coming months, identifying potential land opportunities as well as networking with land agents, Simran will move on to work in other departments at the company. She says she is looking forward to gaining a broad range of expertise that will stand her in good stead, whatever specialism she eventually chooses.
“It does make you more well-rounded and knowledgeable about the other processes involved,” she said.
For more information about career opportunities with Bellway, https://www.bellwaycareers.co.uk/.
For more information about developments being built by Bellway West Midlands, visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/west-midlands.
