The Real Apprentice - You Are Hired - Sophie Gawin - Willmott Dixon
17 March 2025
Build UK Chair and D-Drill & Sawing managing director Julie White is passionate about bringing through the next generation of workforce in the construction industry.
In a new feature, entitled The Real Apprentice – You Are Hired, Julie has been catching up with apprentices in the industry both within D-Drill and at other companies in the sector to show the breadth of careers on offer – with more than 200 jobs in the industry!
Sophie Gawin is a management trainee at Willmott Dixon and after completing a two-year HNC in construction and built environment at Welwyn Garden City, she is now studying for a degree apprenticeship in construction management at the University of Westminster.
The 21-year-old goes to university one day a week and the rest of the week, Sophie is getting real-life experience having responsibility for assisting in managing a pre-construction team.
“I spoke to my careers advisor at school and said I was interested in construction and she gave me a list of 10 to 20 construction companies,” Sophie explained.
“My neighbour then posted an item about Willmott Dixon looking to hire apprentices and since they were on my teacher’s list as well, I decided to apply and I was successful!
“That was in September 2022 and I don’t regret it at all. When we moved into a new build house a few years ago in Bedfordshire, I was always asking to see each stage of the house being built and during lockdown, we knocked down two sheds in our garden and me and my mum create a little shed. We did the damp-proofing, laid the vinyl, created borders, everything, so I thought construction was definitely for me.
“My day-to-day responsibilities involve assisting the project manager in managing the pre-construction team of estimators, surveyors, design managers and operations managers and pulling all the information together and talk to the customers to ensure their needs are met and the work is being carried out to schedule.
“I work on a combination of new builds and refurbishments and they can both be complex because you need to be aware of the different regulations in each area. When I first started, I didn’t know that something like bat surveys needed completing so there are so many different areas to think about!
“Projects can change so quickly and I find that interesting because there can be different ways of meeting the challenges and achieving the customers’ requirements. Every project is a different challenge and no two projects are the same.
“I am so glad I have gone down the apprenticeship route of learning while I’m studying. If, for example, the topic in my degree is about heating systems then I can ask the experts at Willmott Dixon to help me and they will always put aside time to offer support because it is very much about putting the practical application to the theory.
“The best project I have worked on is helping to create Wixams Primary School which is a five-minute drive away from where I live and knowing that my family and friends’ children are going to go to that school gives me great pleasure as well as knowing the good this will bring to the local community that I have helped to develop.
“When I was growing up, I wanted to be an estate agent because I loved the idea of selling and looking at homes.
“The best part of my job is knowing that my projects and the work that I am doing is contributing to a good environment, helping local communities and creating better lives for future generations.
“The challenge is not going to sites as often as I would like to because I get caught up in work at the office when I would like to get out more and see the projects being built.
“Construction is a great industry for apprentices but I would say to anyone thinking of doing it to definitely research all the different jobs involved in the sector. I thought there were only two or three but there are hundreds and hundreds! There is something for everyone.
“When I have finished my degree apprenticeship, I will be promoted to assistant project manager and then progress to the project manager role.
“If I wasn’t working in this industry, I think I would be in the finance industry because I studied for A-level finance and I have always been interested in the cost of projects.
“My role model is my mum, who is an accountant in the flooring industry because she has always worked hard and is my biggest supporter.
“I love the fact that you never stop learning. I never knew there are so many different packages on-site and so many different roles such as estimators, a customer care team, document controllers, and business improvement.”
Julie’s thoughts: “Sophie is a shining example of the benefits of being an apprentice because you are earning while you are learning and learning from your colleagues so you are putting the knowledge from your college or university course into practice every day.
“Everyone is always learning whether you are like me and have been involved in the industry for decades or whether you are starting out in your career like Sophie.
“I love the fact that more young women are considering construction as a career because there are so many different roles – from working on-site to making sense of spreadsheets!”
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