Women in Property were not about to let social distancing get in the way of holding their South West Student Awards 2020, sponsored by Hydrock, JLL and Willmott Dixon. On 11th June, the families, friends and professionals from the built environment industry all celebrated the achievements of 17 talented regional student finalists…on Zoom, when two regional winners were announced.
University of the West of England student Florence Clarke, studying Real Estate and Ellie Naraidoo studying Civil Engineering at the University of Bath, go through to represent their Universities and the region in the national final.
“The National Student Awards programme was established to seek out our top built environment students each year and raise awareness to the many amazing and diverse career opportunities offered across this industry. The two South West judging panels took place back in February and early March before lockdown and, after all their hard work, we didn’t want to let our regional finalists down by not holding an awards event,” said Rachael Sherratt, Women in Property branch Chairman and Associate at JLL, Bristol.
The Women in Property team asked the finalists to submit a one-minute video showcasing themselves and their work, which they loaded onto YouTube. The videos were then shown on Zoom, together with a presentation from keynote speaker Fabienne Viala, Chairman of national Awards sponsor, Bouygues Construction in the UK, alongside Savills.
The judges described winner Florence Clarke as “very strong, capable, confident, professional and energetic, her passion and drive came through.”
Ellie Naraidoo was described as “confident and knowledgeable, very articulate, she gave a fantastic presentation, her passion was evident.”
Richard Bath, Associate from Hydrock, who was on the judging panel said, “I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the WIP Student Awards judging panel in Exeter. It was really positive to see the passion and enthusiasm that came across during the interview process. If this a snapshot into the future stars of the property and construction industry, we will be in very safe hands!”
Simon Peacock, Head of South & Wales for JLL, who was also on the judging panel said, “This was my first year judging the award and I was very impressed by the standard, enthusiasm and commitment of the candidates. The success for me was hearing and learning from the candidates; and my fellow judges sharing to support these excellent people in their future careers.”
Kate Francis, Chartered Engineer, Bid Manager (PreConstruction Project Manager) at Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd, who was also on the judging panel said, “This is our fourth year of sponsoring the Women in Property student awards, an important event that helps encourage and foster increased diversity in our sector. It was an honour to be on the judging panel and meet the students. The calibre of nominees and their work was impressive, and it is exciting to see that the built environment has a very promising pipeline of talent. We wish Florence and Ellie the best of luck in the national final and all of the students luck for the rest of their studies.”
Florence and Ellie each receive a cheque for £500, a trophy and access to Women in Property’s acclaimed mentoring programme. They go through to the national Final which, subject to Government advice, will be held on 16th September at Claridge’s.
