Show Notes
For the last three years, DragonHeart Homes, a CIOB company in Peterborough that makes modular units for public-sector housing, has employed prisoners from HMP North Sea Camp, a Category-D open men’s prison outside Boston in Lincolnshire.
So far, 41 inmates have come to work at DragonHeart. They get training and NVQs in construction skills, with CSCS cards.
It sets them up with cash in the bank and, upon their release, skills and experience the construction industry is crying out for.
DragonHeart is the largest employer in a government scheme called Prisoners Building Homes, which unlocks public land for modular housing developments and helps prisoners get work with the builders.
Some of the inmates have stayed with DragonHeart after their release, while others have gone to work at other companies in the scheme.
Six months after their release, most are in full employment and almost none have re-offended.
For this podcast, Global Construction Review editor Rod Sweet went to Peterborough to sit down with two men who’ve come through the DragonHeart programme.
One came back to work with the company after his release. Now 57, he’s been in prison for most of his adult life.
The other, still in prison, has accepted a permanent job offer from the company after his release in six weeks.
In candid conversations, both men say the experience has changed their lives. They’re proud of their new skills, proud to be looking after themselves and their families, and they love their jobs.
The man driving the outreach is DragonHeart director Jason Bassett MCIOB. He says the prisoners are reliable, productive workers who are eager to learn. He explains how the scheme works.
We also hear from Cheshire Police & Crime Commissioner Dan Price, who is on a mission to bring the Prisoners Building Homes scheme to Cheshire.
More from 21st Century Construction
It’s been a year since Awaab’s Law came into force, setting strict new rules that registered social landlords must follow in dealing with damp and mould. The law was named after 2-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died in 2020 of severe respiratory failure as a result of prolonged exposure to mould in his home in Rochdale. In the three years leading up to his death, the housing association took no action to deal with the mould, despite repeated notifications. Now, under Awaab’s Law, landlords have to respond to “emergency” mould hazards within 24 hours, and “significant” hazards within 15 days. Serious challenges Complying with the law poses serious technical, resource and public engagement challenges for landlords, and the sector is still feeling its way. To help, CIOB and the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) joined forces to publish a useful playbook – Tackling damp and mould: Professional practice, cultural change and regulation in social housing – providing landlords with advice on recognising damp and mould, problem solving with residents and taking steps to resolve root causes. Update from the front In this month’s 21CC podcast, we speak to experts who contributed to the playbook, and provide an update from the frontline in the ongoing battle against this serious problem. We hear from Professor John Edwards FCIOB, who wrote the section on how to inspect properties for the hazard, and CIH policy lead Dr Eve Blezard on the need to avoid scapegoating residents. Claire Hawley and Leon Sidebottom, who lead customer engagement for Berneslai Homes, share what they learned about what works and what doesn’t in engaging tenants. And researchers Dr Graeme Sherriff and Philip Martin from the University of Salford’s Sustainable Housing and Urban Studies Unit share insights from their extensive research into how damp and mould affects households in Greater Manchester. We think this pacey podcast will interest people across a wide range of roles and responsibilities in the housing sector.
This month marks the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks on the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City.
Plant trees down high streets. Retrofit schools, hospitals and care homes with external shading. Cool down beds and install ceiling fans. Legislate for minimum indoor temperatures. Ban glass towers. Paint roofs white. Set up a cooling refuge in every community. Reduce glazing and install windows that open.
The end of April saw two major announcements regarding humanoid robots, a technology the construction sector hopes can work with the human workforce to improve productivity.
The government’s £15bn Warm Homes Plan, launched in January, is aimed at upgrading the nation’s homes and cutting energy bills.