LOVELL Partnerships has announced the appointment of a new refurbishment partnerships director, helping to progress social housing and retrofit projects across the West Midlands.
With more than 20 years of experience in the housing and construction industry, Matt Hickman has worked in a number of senior management roles and brings a wealth of knowledge to Lovell.
Committed to boosting social value in communities, Matt is keen to not only help provide safe, warm and energy-efficienct homes, but to also offer training, development and job opportunities for young people or those in long-term unemployment.
Matt said: “Joining Lovell is a very exciting career move for me, and I’m looking forward to getting stuck into building relationships with key housing providers and delivering retrofit projects at scale, as well as helping to raise the profile of the fantastic refurbishment side of the business. With more funding coming through from the government this is an opportune time to deliver social housing decarbonisation fund (SHDF) projects throughout the region.
“The company culture at Lovell is strong and is something that stood out to me. Inclusion, respect and treating people well are just as important as doing a good job, and providing a positive environment for the team to work in is essential. If our people feel supported then they will deliver the very best for our partners and clients, and that is something Lovell does very well so it’s a pleasure to be part of the team.”
Carl Yale, regional refurbishment director at Lovell, said: “Matt is a fantastic addition to our team and has a thorough understanding of and excellent experience in the industry.
“Continuing to push forward with our refurbishment and retrofit goals in order to meet the government’s net zero target is extremely important, and we know Matt’s expertise will be invaluable in helping us do this.”
Matt’s appointment comes at an exciting time for the team, as Lovell continues to invest in local communities. Working in partnership with Citizen Housing, Coventry College and the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), Lovell recently delivered the first Multi-Skills Bootcamp, designed to educate adult learners in the Coventry area on a range of employable construction disciplines. The scheme supports the housebuilder’s aim to refurbish over 10,000 homes over a 10-year period, having recently secured a large contract with Citizen Housing to deliver replacement kitchens and bathrooms across Coventry and the wider Midlands.