North East Chairs

Hollie Statham is a Design Manager at one of the largest, most successful privately-owned construction and development groups in the UK, Bowmer and Kirkland.

Upon graduating from the University of Liverpool in 2018 with a BA Hons degree in Architecture, Hollie joined the construction industry as a Trainee in a mission to not only build on her site experience but bring her creativity and pragmatic thinking to the built environment. Hollie has been involved in several high profile projects throughout her time in the industry so far, such as the National Innovation Centre of Ageing and Data, The Catalyst, part of the Newcastle Helix Development, Bellway Headquarters, Woolsington, Hamptons by Hilton, Stockton and currently Bank House, part of the regeneration of Pilgrim Street. Hollie has led not only on the design coordination of her projects but also focused on the sustainability agenda, notably looking at net-zero carbon solutions and achieving BREEAM Outstanding for the Catalyst.

Hollie is an advocate for young professionals in the industry and strives to raise the profile of the industry amongst our future generation by promoting careers within construction, breaking down stereotypes, particularly in encouraging females into the industry, and raising aspirations of the region. As well as being our North East Co-chair, Hollie champions schemes such as Career Ready, NELEP Enterprise Advisors scheme, NAWIC North East (Social Media Coordinator and Mentor), NEUPC Engagement Lead and CITB Construction Ambassadors. Her passion certainly doesn’t go unnoticed, winning G4C New Professional of the Year 2019 and G4C Mentor of the Year 2020.

Mitchell is a Project Manager with Newcastle City Council’s Major Projects Team. Mitchell joined the council at the age of 16, intending to pursue a career in architecture. Working within a multi-disciplined team, he worked on some of Newcastle’s most prized assets, such as the Castle Keep. During his time with Architectural Services, he worked on a project to transform a number of the city’s key main primary schools, for which he won national recognition.

Since then, he has been involved in the delivery of Newcastle Helix, a leading site for research and innovation in the heart of Newcastle. Mitchell manages the daily co-ordination between contractors, design teams and clients to ensure the £350 million scheme is a success and achieves its objective to become a 24-acre testbed and collaborative ecosystem for public and private bodies that are unlike anything else in the UK.

Having achieved an ONC, HNC, HND in Construction and the Built Environment at New College Durham and achieving various construction management qualifications, Mitchell is now studying a Quantity Surveying degree part-time at Northumbria University. Mitchell looks to use his knowledge on modern methods of construction and climate change mitigation and adaptation to influence how we approach future large infrastructure projects to ensure sustainability and social values are included wherever possible.

The most prestigious award Mitchell has received to date was in 2015, when he was named the National Apprentice of the Year at the Association of Public Service Excellence awards. This year, Mitchell won the Isaac Berriman Cup for the Best Apprentice of the Year from the Isaac and Alan Berriman Trust, New College Durham’s Overall Apprentice of the Year and Technical & Professional Apprentice of the Year. These accolades came alongside earlier awards – 3rd Year Apprentice of the Year and overall Apprentice of the Year for Newcastle Council 2014.