HSE International ISSUE 109 | Page 20

RoSPA AWARDS 2017: BERKELEY HOMES (EAST AND WEST THAMES) BUILT FOR SUCCESS An interview with Karl Whiteman, Divisional Managing Director at Berkeley Homes (East and West Thames). Tell us about your history and capabilities as one of the UK’s best known developers of new homes. Based in Woolwich, south-east London, Berkeley Homes (East and West Thames), a part of The Berkeley Group Holdings plc, has developed house building schemes for almost 20 years. We have two of the largest regeneration schemes in the country - Kidbrooke Village and Royal Arsenal Riverside. Along with these schemes, and others in East London, we’ll be delivering around 15,000 new homes over a 20 year period. These are extremely large projects - for an idea of scale, we directly employ around 250 people in various managerial positions, and then on our construction sites on a day-to-day basis, we employ an additional 1,500 workers. Congratulations on your recent success as winners of the RoSPA Sir George Earle Trophy! Tell us about the submission process and what it means to win the award. As Divisional Managing Director, health and safety is very much at the top of the agenda; not only to me but also to the business. Our talented and varied workforce, with both employees and the supply chain, is our strongest resource. Their safety and health is vital, particularly as we work in a safety critical industry.  Karl Whiteman being presented with the Sir George Earle Trophy by RoPSA Vice President Lord Jordan CBE (left) and Chief Executive Errol Taylor (right). Photograph: HSE International. 20 HSE INTERNATIONAL