Young bricklayer works on own home at Wigston housing development

A talented young bricklayer has recently celebrated moving into a house that he helped to build at a popular housing development in Wigston.

Luke Martin (23) completed his bricklaying apprenticeship with Westleigh Homes in 2015 and has moved into his magnificent Mayne at Thornhill Fields, the leading housebuilder’s collection of two, three and four-bedroom homes, where he has been living with fiancée Matia Birch (23), a nurse, since June.

During his course, Martin split his time between studying at Leicester College and gaining hands-on experience at Westleigh’s developments across the Midlands, including Thornhill Fields, plus Hawkesbury Place in Coventry and Butterfields in Boothville, Northamptonshire.

“When I first began as an apprentice, I quickly learned that Westleigh is a great company to work for,” he said.  “During the time that I’ve spent with them, I feel as though I’ve come such a long way and I’ve gained plenty of confidence in myself and my own ability.”

It was shortly after construction began on Thornhill Fields and Martin had started working on the development that he decided that it would be the perfect place to live.

“I always wanted a new build home, and I was really impressed by the scope of the development when I first saw the plans and drawings,” he continues. “Not only is the area really nice, but the idea of working on the same development that I live on was a big pull factor, so I save

d up enough money to reserve a house there!”

Ideal for professional couples and growing families alike, the three-bedroom Mayne housetype features a light and airy living room, a rear-aspect kitchen/diner with double doors leading to the private rear garden and a guest cloakroom off the entrance hallway.

Upstairs, the landing leads to three good-sized bedrooms, one of which comes complete with its own en-suite shower room, and a family bathroom.

“Even though we’ve now settled in, I still haven’t gotten over the fact that I’m living in a house that I helped to build!,” adds Martin.

“Knowing that it was my house when I was still working on it was a real labour of love for me. Working in construction appealed to me from an early age and I used to love playing with Lego as a kid, so having built my own home doesn’t seem real! We really like the space that the house provides and it’s great to be in a new build where no one else has lived before, as it really feels like your own. The house is also in a great location on the development where we’re overlooking fields, so the views that we have are really fantastic.

“On top of that, there’s a real sense of community at Thornhill Fields and all our neighbours are lovely. There are lots of young families and there’s a very welcoming atmosphere. I feel really proud to have been a part of Thornhill Fields and the journey that I’ve been on, having seen the development grow from the very start, has been amazing.”

In order to secure their home, Luke and Matia took advantage of Help to Buy, which enables first-time buyers and those with a property to sell to make a move to a brand new home with an equity loan of up to 20% of the full price of the property with just a 5% deposit and a 75% mortgage. The equity loan is interest free for the first five years.

“Help to Buy really made a big difference for us and allowed everything to fall into place very nicely,” he observes. “The process was explained really clearly to us by the Sales Executives, who were so supportive throughout.”

Lisa Morris, New Homes Manager at Westleigh, said: “Many congratulations to Luke and Matia on the purchase of their beautiful new house at Thornhill Fields, which has proven such a success with quick-off-the-mark buyers that all of the homes here have now been reserved. It’s always fascinating to see the progress of our apprentices and Luke is a shining example of what can be achieved by completing an apprenticeship with us.  On behalf of everyone at Westleigh, I would like to wish them a very happy life at the development.”

Though all of the home at Thornhill Fields have been reserved, a stunning selection of homes are still available at Westleigh’s developments across the Midlands, including at Wolsey Island and St Mary’s Park, both of which are in Leicester.

Westleigh will soon be opening applications for apprentices in 2019 and a range of schemes are available, specialising in bricklaying, carpentry/joinery and groundwork trades.

The Advanced Apprentice (Level 3) programme takes approximately three years to compete, during which time trainees will learn at a local college alongside working at Westleigh’s various developments in the Midlands and beyond.

“To anyone who is considering taking an apprenticeship with Westleigh, I would encourage them to be determined and go for it,” Luke concludes. “I hope that my story will inspire a new generation of bricklayers to realise what they can achieve. Now that I’ve qualified as a bricklayer, I’m still loving the job – I’m even training an apprentice myself now.”

To learn more about apprenticeships with Westleigh, visit www.westleigh.co.uk/careerDetail?JobID=29.