With the growing need to support working families, wraparound care facilities have become an essential service in primary schools across England.

 

These facilities offer before- and after-school care, creating a safe, structured environment for children outside of regular school hours. By 2026, all primary schools will need to ensure that wraparound care is accessible, either through school-provided services or local partnerships.

This guide provides key stakeholders with ten essential considerations when procuring wraparound care facilities, ensuring they are functional, compliant, and tailored to meet the evolving needs of both students and families.

  1. Ellie Wolfe, Product Development Engineer

    "After completing my Mechanical Engineering Degree in 2018 at Sheffield Hallam University, I began my journey at Portakabin as a Graduate Development Engineer. In 2020, I was promoted to my current role as a Product Development Engineer, working full-time in the Design and Engineering department at York Head Office.

     

    I decided to pursue a career in construction due to my passion for real-world problem solving, where I can make an impact by transforming concepts to finalised products. My role is diverse, with responsibilities that include managing existing platforms and exploring innovations in materials and manufacturing processes. My role also involves 3D design, calculations, trial work, compliance testing, and much more.

    One key achievement I am particularly proud of is a product cost reduction project we worked on as a team, surpassing what seemed to be an already ambitious target. I thrive in a team environment with a variety, and diversity of people and professional backgrounds and experiences. I've found it incredibly rewarding to contribute to a project that has had a lasting impact on the business.

    Like many women in the construction industry, I've faced challenges, including having my abilities overlooked, seeing questions deferred to others, and encountering assumptions that I was in a supporting role to a male counterpart rather than an equal one. 

    Despite these challenges, I've had the pleasure of working alongside brilliant colleagues, mentors and managers – both male and female – who actively champion a more tolerant and inclusive workplace for all.

    I want to encourage women not to be deterred from pursuing careers in the construction industry due to a lack of representation. I believe that the more women who enter the industry and pave the path for those of underrepresented backgrounds, the better the landscape will become for women and the future generations looking to join. I hope my presence and journey inspires more women to join the sector, as having representation to look up to made a huge difference in my own career search."

  2. Deborah Poxton, Production Team Leader

    "I actually fell into construction inadvertently, I originally started at Portakabin in HR, and then a Production Team Leader (PTL) role came available and I was encouraged to apply for it.  I felt my experience within manufacturing and HR management would stand me in good stead for the role. I have never regretted changing career paths.

    The days within manufacturing/construction are varied, constantly changing and interesting. A PTL is the link between the business and the shop floor, ensuring that production is managed on time as smoothly as possible. We manage all aspects of the Unit we run, including the management of the team, supervising projects, always keeping the H&S of yourself and your team including contractors and visitors at the forefront of every decision.

    Being a PTL with a trusting team around you can be most rewarding.

    There can be challenges as a woman in any sector, however, for me in construction/manufacturing, initially on the shop floor; I was asked things like ‘what I know about engineering’ and ‘what are you going to do when my machine breaks down’.  There have been isolated incidences where I have been spoken to with a chauvinistic attitude.

    However, I have a management style where I feel I can win most people over by being fair but firm, and more importantly understanding and approachable.  The best way to overcome a challenge is to not take it personally, but to remain professional and steadfast.

    On the whole, I have been shown a great deal of respect and support from my managers, colleagues, other departments, and more importantly, from the teams I have managed within Metal Fabrication and Alta Production.

    The most rewarding moments of my career without a doubt, have been when I have encouraged and inspired someone to progress and actually seen their progression journey. I get great joy from this.

    We live in a more inclusive society and women are accepted more into roles that were predominantly male. I would advise any woman wanting to work in the industry to just do it! I came here with absolutely no construction experience, but I have thoroughly enjoyed my journey and the opportunities that I have been presented with. There is no reason why women cannot succeed in any role. 

    My career has advanced in a male environment and I have shown by being the only female PTL that women can make a positive impact within the construction industry.  Hopefully I am paving the way for the business to see that women in management within manufacturing can be successful."

  3. Lizzie Jenkins, Head of Project Delivery at Darwin Group

    "My journey into construction started entirely by accident when I received a job offer nearly 7 years ago having never really considered construction. It wasn't something that naturally came to mind for me being a very girly girl. I didn't see myself moving into the construction side of things. I started on the commercial side and branched out from there finding interest in both the Construction and Design channels also and finding a real joy for it.

    Listening to other people talk about Construction and understanding how everything works has deepened my interest. I like to have a thorough understanding of everything to really enjoy myself - if I don't understand something, I'll naturally be more hesitant. In this I have found myself branching out more and more to learn and development myself and to overcome my challenges. This has given me a real confidence in the field.

    For my proudest achievement, I'd have to say it was delivering the Orthopaedic Elective Hub and Community Diagnostics Centre at James Paget last year, on a personal level I'm pretty proud of the project. I can see my own professional and personal growth here also. Delivering such a great building and seeing how much it's meant to so many. While it helps that it looks attractive and has some real quality finishes, the significant impact this has had is what hits home the hardest - it’s going to be a very fond memory of mine for years to come.

    Some women might approach the industry with expectations given that it is predominantly a male dominated industry, believing that they have to look, act or think a certain way in order to fit in and succeed. The reality for me is that you really don’t. The importance, as with most things, is that you just be yourself. I have never seen a stigma or barriers that some may perceive there to be. Everybody is friendly and here with a common goal, to deliver a great buildings for people. Just be yourself and enjoy it and have fun along the way!”

Join our mailing list to receive insights, tips, and the latest updates on creating exceptional wraparound care facilitates and more.

Subscribe