Meet Belul Mesfin, who has joined the team building Brent Cross Town after a work placement that is part of our commitment to encourage women into construction.

Belul began her placement in June, after completing her Masters in Construction and Engineering Management.

And she has impressed so much in that time that she has been offered – and accepted – a position with Galldris as a Graduate Construction Manager.

She said: “This was my first work experience on a construction site, and for it to be as large as Brent Cross Town meant I was able to see the different roles and get a better understanding.

“I thought it will be an intimidating environment; however, I was wrong. Staff were welcoming and made me comfortable. I was able to go on site and see the changes on a daily basis.”

The work placement was part of Galldris’s partnership with Women Into Construction, an organisation which is designed to tackle the gender imbalance in the industry. Galldris are one of the UK’s leading construction companies, and Belul’s first two weeks saw her supported by Project Manager Isa Ribeiro whose story was recently featured in our story about International Women’s Day.

Belul secured her initial placement after an event at which 16 women were interviewed for the chance to join on a temporary basis.

Her experience follows that of two other women, Natalia Bokhonko and Leila Sadeghi Bogar, who had work placements this summer on the new train station Brent Cross West through Women Into Construction.

All of these placements are part of the wider work by the Brent Cross Cricklewood regeneration programme to offer new opportunities to people from a range of backgrounds and through a range of routes. This includes apprenticeships, Kickstarter roles, and supporting good causes in the community. You can read more about opportunities with the programme on our dedicated page here.