Career Stories | Linda Kennedy – Executive Director, Ministry of Justice

In this Government Property Month special edition, we sat down with Linda Kennedy as she reflected on the lessons she’s learnt from her 31 years of civil service.https://youtu.be/NQMB5cuGv0M?si=YHaAuA-a4cHXNVhT Our Career Stories series continues with a special Government Property Month edition featuring Linda Kennedy, Executive Director at the Ministry of Justice UK. From growing up in West London and becoming the first person in her family to attend university, to spending 31 years building a career in the Civil Service, Linda’s journey is a brilliant example of why there is no single route to success. Linda reflects openly on the impact of class and accent on her career, the importance of being authentic, and why she is passionate about creating a level playing field for people from all backgrounds. She also shares her advice for young people starting out: take opportunities, build your network and don’t feel you need to change who you are to succeed. As Linda puts it, “talent is everywhere but opportunity is not.” Watch the full interview above. You might also be interested in… You might also be interested in… All Posts News Career Stories | Mark Kelly, Disposals & Development Director, TT Group – Copy In this Government Property Month special edition, we sat down with Linda Kennedy as she reflected on the lessons she’s… Read More Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Debate! Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of… Read More Career Stories | Mark Kelly, Disposals & Development Director, TT Group The first episode of our brand new video series is out now! Watch the full episode to hear how Mark… Read More

Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Debate!

Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of discussion and collaboration. Less resource. Greater expectations. Bigger challenges. What needs to change? Central and local government property teams are under pressure to improve productivity, address skills gaps and deliver greater public value. This is not another conference filled with presentations. It is an afternoon of lively, audience-led debate bringing together senior leaders, emerging talent, public bodies and the supply chain to challenge assumptions and test competing ideas. We will tackle two big questions: How can government property attract, develop and empower the talent needed for the future?   How do we make public-sector property careers attractive to a broader range of people, create meaningful jobs and apprenticeships, close critical skills gaps, retain and upskill talent, and give the next generation a genuine voice in decision-making? What will deliver the biggest productivity gain across the regions: better data, better use of assets, better decisions or better collaboration?   Could shared assets, stronger partnerships and a genuine duty to cooperate between public bodies deliver more than organisations working alone? And how do we ensure that productivity gains create regional parity and wider public value? Through structured debate, live voting and an open fishbowl discussion, the audience will not simply watch the conversation. You will be part of it. Register your interest now!  You might also be interested in… You might also be interested in… All Posts News Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Deabte! Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of… Read More BBC Feature Highlights the Impact of Accent Bias on Young People’s Career Opportunities Earlier this week the BBC reported on the issue of workplace accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned… Read More Career Stories, Coming Soon… At Common Ground, we believe that you can’t be what you can’t see. That’s why we’re excited to announce our… Read More

Career Stories | Mark Kelly, Disposals & Development Director, TT Group

The first episode of our brand new video series is out now! Watch the full episode to hear how Mark went from council estate to director at TT Group. At Common Ground, we believe that you can’t be what you can’t see. That’s why we’ve launched Career Stories, a new video series designed to shine a spotlight on the inspiring journeys of professionals from across the property and built environment sectors. Through honest and open conversations, Career Stories explores how people found their way into the industry, the challenges they faced along the way, and the lessons they learned throughout their careers. Our aim is to help young people discover career paths and opportunities they may never have considered before, while showing that there is no single route into the world of property and the built environment. For the first episode in the series, we sat down with Mark Kelly, Disposals & Development Director at TT Group. Growing up on the Larner Road Estate in South East London, Mark left school at 16 and secured his first role in the post room at BT after visiting the local job centre. More than four decades later, he has built an impressive career with stints at BT and Telereal Trillium, culminating in his current leadership role at TT Group. Mark’s story is a powerful reminder that talent exists everywhere, and that background should never define ambition. We hope his journey inspires the next generation to explore the many opportunities available across our industry. Watch the full interview below.  You might also be interested in… You might also be interested in… All Posts News Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Debate! Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of… Read More Career Stories | Mark Kelly, Disposals & Development Director, TT Group The first episode of our brand new video series is out now! Watch the full episode to hear how Mark… Read More BBC Feature Highlights the Impact of Accent Bias on Young People’s Career Opportunities Earlier this week the BBC reported on the issue of workplace accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned… Read More

BBC Feature Highlights the Impact of Accent Bias on Young People’s Career Opportunities

Earlier this week the BBC reported on the issue of workplace accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned by Common Ground.  This week, the BBC published a feature exploring the issue of accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned by Common Ground, alongside interviews with young people from our network who shared their own experiences of being judged because of the way they speak.  The research found that one in ten people in Britain feel anxious or self-conscious about their accent in professional settings, while many respondents reported feeling pressure to modify the way they speak in order to fit in. The polling also found that 5% of people believe their accent has cost them a pay rise, promotion or senior role, highlighting the tangible impact that these perceptions can have on career outcomes.  You can read the BBC article here The issue of accent bias is particularly relevant to the property and built environment sectors. While our industry has made significant progress in recent years, people from working-class and lower socio-economic backgrounds continue to be underrepresented in many parts of the profession. As a result, assumptions linked to accent, geography, education and social background can become barriers to opportunity and progression.  For Common Ground, this is not simply a conversation about the way people speak. It is a conversation about social mobility, inclusion and access to opportunity. Accent bias is just one example of the barriers that many young people face when trying to enter and succeed within the property and built environment industries. Whether those barriers relate to professional networks, access to work experience, confidence, financial circumstances or workplace culture, they can all prevent talented individuals from reaching their full potential.  There are encouraging signs of progress. Across the property and built environment sectors, many organisations are actively working to create more inclusive cultures and widen access to opportunities. However, there is still significant work to do if we are to build an industry that truly reflects the communities it serves.  At Common Ground, we remain committed to opening up careers in property and the built environment to talented people from every background. Through mentoring, networking, work experience, industry engagement and social mobility programmes, we work with employers and partners who share our ambition to remove barriers and create more inclusive pathways into the sector.  We were proud to support this important national conversation and to help bring greater awareness to an issue that affects people across the UK. Our hope is that this coverage acts as a catalyst for change and encourages employers, educators and industry leaders to reflect on the role that accent bias can play in limiting opportunity.  If your organisation is committed to tackling barriers to opportunity and creating a more inclusive built environment sector, we would love to hear from you.  You might also be interested in… You might also be interested in… All Posts News Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Deabte! Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value  In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of… Read More BBC Feature Highlights the Impact of Accent Bias on Young People’s Career Opportunities Earlier this week the BBC reported on the issue of workplace accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned… Read More From Student to CEO Networking – Mills & Reeve, Birmingham Following the success of our recent From Student to CEO Networking Lunch in London, Common Ground is delighted to announce… Read More

From Student to CEO Networking – Mills & Reeve, Birmingham

Following the success of our recent From Student to CEO Networking Lunch in London, Common Ground is delighted to announce that the event series is coming to Birmingham this October.  Hosted by Mills & Reeve, the event will bring together students, early career professionals, senior leaders and CEOs from across the property and built environment sectors for an afternoon of networking, conversation and connection.  Our London event demonstrated the value of creating spaces where people from all backgrounds and stages of their careers can come together on an equal footing. We can’t wait to bring that same energy and environment to Birmingham.  Whether you have an interest in property or the built environment or are pursuing a career in the professions that support our sector, including law, finance, HR and marketing, this event is for you.   The aim of From Student to CEO Networking is simple: to break down barriers between generations and career stages, creating opportunities for people to learn from one another, build confidence and expand their professional networks.   For students and those early in their careers, the event offers an opportunity to meet industry professionals, develop networking skills and gain valuable insight into the wide range of careers available across the sector. For experienced professionals and business leaders, it provides a chance to connect with peers, identify future talent and help open doors for young people who may not otherwise have access to these opportunities.  At Common Ground, we believe that access to networks should not be determined by background, connections or circumstance.   Places are limited, and early registration is encouraged.  Date: Thursday 1 October Time: 12:30pm to 2:00pm Venue: Mills & Reeve, 1 Centenary Way, Birmingham, B3 3AY  Sign up now to secure your place You might also be interested in… You might also be interested in… All Posts News Common Sense: Government Property Futures – The Great Deabte! Doing More With Less: Talent, Collaboration and Public Value  In celebration of Government Property Month, we’ve partnered with Arcadis to deliver a unique afternoon of… Read More BBC Feature Highlights the Impact of Accent Bias on Young People’s Career Opportunities Earlier this week the BBC reported on the issue of workplace accent bias in the UK, drawing on polling commissioned… Read More From Student to CEO Networking – Mills & Reeve, Birmingham Following the success of our recent From Student to CEO Networking Lunch in London, Common Ground is delighted to announce… Read More