As part of International Women’s Day at the beginning of March, Housing Technology caught up with Hannah Lock, a project manager at Platform Housing Group, to discuss her career as an IT consultant and find out why she’s involved in social housing.
Lots of people who work in social housing do so because they want to make a difference; what are your reasons?
Like many people in our sector, there’s certainly an element of ‘accidentally’ ending up in social housing! I studied biochemistry at university and although it was interesting and challenging, what I enjoyed most was the opportunity to get stuck in with the local community and engaging with social justice issues.
I joined a group called Just Love Exeter and volunteered at the local foodbank and weekly breakfast club for the homeless in the city. After graduating, I wanted to explore how I could combine my love of science and research with my passion for changing systemic issues and came across a Master’s programme in Global Health and Social Justice at King’s College London.
This was an eye-opening experience, covering everything from philosophy to statistical analysis, and it was also my first opportunity to dive deeper into the relationship between health inequalities and social housing. And while I enjoyed learning about global problems, it also made me realise how many of these problems existed in my own city and set me on a path of making a difference in whatever local space I am involved in.
I moved to Oxford in 2018 to start a graduate programme called CharityWorks and ended up with a placement at a housing and support organisation, specialising in services for people with learning disabilities and mental health conditions. I was supposed to spend the year doing data analysis and report writing but with the help of a very supportive manager, I soon discovered that I’m very much a people person with a vision for using technology to enable strategy.
I’ve since spent the last couple of years as an IT consultant, working with a huge variety of social housing-based organisations to drive transformation with a focus on people, processes and purpose, and as a volunteer trustee for a local homeless charity. The people I’ve met along the way are the reason I remain so invested in the sector.
Tell us about your involvement with WiSH and what it means for women in housing.
I am an active board member of the Midlands arm of WiSH (Women in Social Housing) and have been part of it for two years. Launched in 2017, it is chaired by Katie Gilmartin, head of business development and innovation at Platform Housing Group. It’s a membership-based network, passionate about supporting women to share their knowledge and experiences and inspire one another in their careers.
At our last WiSH Midlands board away-day, we raised the topic of women in technology within social housing. As someone who has spent the past six years working in this area, I’m particularly passionate about shining a light on technology to encourage more women into the discipline and creating inclusive spaces for women to progress and build careers in technology. At WiSH, we celebrate women every day!
With International Women’s Day earlier this month, what are your thoughts about the gender balance in social housing?
Interestingly, 57 per cent of the workforce is female in social housing (according to 2022 research from NHF EDI), but women remain under-represented in the technology sector, particularly at director-level.
Research has shown that inclusive organisations are more likely to be agile and innovative, as well as achieving better outcomes. It’s important that, within the technology sector, we’re representative of the societies we serve so that we can create and deliver solutions that embrace the needs of those who will be using our technologies.
International Women’s Day is a particular opportunity to elevate our voices and imagine a world where difference is valued and celebrated. This year, IWD focused on how we can forge women’s equality and collectively inspire inclusion.
What does the future look like for you?
I would love to get involved with more research in the sector and see proactive change being driven in response to root causes. I love that there has been increased opportunity for collaborative working in recent years and would love to be involved with this across other sectors as well as learning from international models of social housing.
Any last words?
I’m passionate about supporting young people to build a career in social housing and encouraging people to explore opportunities to become a young trustee. I truly believe there is so much power and innovation in creating inclusive spaces to drive and inform the direction of an organisation.
I have the privilege of mentoring graduates on the CharityWorks programme, which I’m sure teaches me as much as it teaches them, and I am incredibly grateful for the support of my network through WiSH.
Hannah Lock is a project manager at Platform Housing Group.
