ESTATE REGENERATION
WORKING AT HOME
The first phase of a
dramatic overhaul of
Havelock estate in Southall
is almost complete and it
has seen local apprentices
taken on to learn a trade
on the doorstep of their
own homes.
“I
have always wanted to be working
in a trade and am enjoying the
opportunity,” said Michael Colliss,
one of five apprentices from
Havelock working on the estate’s
redevelopment.
Michael, 20, is learning to be a plumber
– and hopes one day to start a business
with his brother, who is a bricklayer.
The regeneration of Havelock
followed a review by Ealing Council,
which owned the land. A report
concluded the old homes on
18
around ealing
Winter 2016/17
the site, built in the 1950s and 1970s,
no longer met national standards. So
the council appointed Catalyst to take
over the site and breathe new life into
the estate after receiving a number of
proposals from developers.
Catalyst started work in 2014 and,
in March 2017, the homes built as
part of the first phase are due to be
ready to move into.
It is a 10-year project that
will eventually provide
more than 900 homes
for social rent, shared
ownership or
private sale.
Alongside the homes will be a new park,
canal-side improvements and better
connections to the surrounding areas.
Catalyst has been ensuring there
are ongoing opportunities for jobs
and training for local people. A fifth
of the labour force on-site live within
a few miles of Havelock, and local
apprentices have been gaining skills –
and qualifications – while working there.
Four apprentices from Havelock –
including Michael – are working on
the Havelock site itself, while another
is at the nearby St Bernard’s Gate
development – another Catalyst
project. The trades being learned
are plumbing, dry-lining, carpentry,
labouring, and brick-laying.
The apprentices attended
a three-day course at
Ealing, Hammersmith
and West London
College to get
a necessary
construction
Michael
safety certificate
Colliss