From Hospitality to Hard Hats: Terry’s Story

Terry spent 32 years in hospitality. Hotels, customer service, the kind of work where people skills aren’t a bonus, they’re everything. Then a wrist injury forced him out of his job at Greggs, and for two years, work simply wasn’t an option.

Construction was never part of the plan. Terry’s father, grandfather, and uncle were all builders, but as he puts it, he couldn’t think of anything worse than being out in the rain going up ladders. It wasn’t his world.

That changed when R&M Williams offered him a resident liaison role on the project. Not because he had a construction background, but because he had something just as valuable: a lifetime of knowing how to deal with people.

From day one, it wasn’t what he expected. He was surprised by how naturally it came to him, how much of what he already knew translated directly into the role.

The job puts Terry at the centre of the community, managing access with tenants, coordinating contractors and subcontractors into apartments, and reporting issues back to the council. But it’s the relationships that have defined it. Residents ring Terry even when their problem is a council matter, not a construction one. He answers anyway.

That trust didn’t happen by accident. Terry was on site six months before the project broke ground, embedding himself in the community, getting to know residents, making sure that when the work started, there was already a familiar face they could turn to. Ninety per cent of residents have been delighted to have the team there.

“I’d never considered construction before. My father, grandfather and uncle were all builders, but I couldn’t think of anything worse than being out in the rain going up ladders. Then this opportunity came along and it genuinely surprised me. The potential to change your life through this industry is amazing. It’s definitely worth giving it a go.”

— Terry, Resident Liaison

For R&M Williams, Terry’s story is exactly what social value looks like in practice. Not a tick-box exercise, but a genuine decision to look beyond CVs and conventional experience and back the right person for the job.

For Terry, it’s been more than a role. It’s been a way back.