General Builder – Groundwork/Bricklaying
Location: Oldham
Contract: Permanent
Hours: 37 hours per week
Salary: £35,703.34
Improving lives in Oldham
First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) has an exciting opportunity for a General Builder – Groundwork/Bricklaying to join our Property Services team and help us deliver high-quality repairs and maintenance services for our customers.
As part of our responsive repairs service, you’ll play a key role in maintaining and improving our homes and neighbourhoods by completing a wide range of brickwork, masonry and external works. From repairing walls and paths to completing groundwork, drainage and property improvements, you’ll help ensure our customers live in safe, well-maintained homes.
Working across FCHO properties, including occupied homes, void properties and communal areas, you’ll provide a professional, customer-focused service while delivering high standards of workmanship and supporting our commitment to improving lives.
Please see the full Job Description attached at the bottom of this page.
The impact you'll make
You’ll help keep our homes safe, secure and well maintained by delivering quality repairs and improvements that support tenancy sustainment and the longevity of our properties.
You will:
- Carry out a wide range of groundworks including excavation, drainage, landscaping, paths, driveways, kerbs, minor concreting, reinstatement and surface repairs.
- Complete brickwork and masonry repairs including bricklaying, repointing, rendering, wall repairs and boundary reinstatement.
- Install, repair and maintain property boundaries including walls, fencing, gates, gate posts, handrails, bollards and safety barriers.
- Undertake patch plastering including float and set, skim finishes, plasterboard repairs and crack repairs.
- Carry out minor roofing and roofline repairs including gutter realignment, gutter replacement and lead flashing repairs.
- Install and maintain surface water drainage systems including gullies, channel drains and Aco drains.
- Complete void property repairs, make-safe works and estate improvement tasks including communal paving and minor landscaping.
- Carry out pre- and post-inspections, identify additional repairs and report any health and safety concerns through PDA systems.
- Maintain accurate records, job updates and photographic evidence using electronic systems.
- Work safely and professionally in customers’ homes, ensuring excellent communication and customer care throughout every repair.
- Support colleagues across the wider repairs service and contribute to a positive, multi-trade working environment.
Our ideal candidate
You’ll be an experienced and skilled builder who takes pride in delivering excellent workmanship and providing a great service to customers. You’ll be confident working independently, managing your own workload and completing repairs safely and efficiently.
You’ll have:
- Experience carrying out brickwork and groundwork repairs within residential properties or a maintenance environment.
- Strong practical skills in bricklaying, repointing, rendering and general masonry repairs.
- Experience completing excavation, drainage, paving, kerbing and external groundworks.
- Experience repairing and maintaining walls, fencing, gates and other boundary works.
- Knowledge of plastering repairs and associated finishing works.
- An understanding of health and safety requirements, risk assessments, method statements and safe working practices.
- The ability to diagnose repairs and complete works within agreed timescales.
- Good communication skills and a customer-focused approach.
- The ability to work independently as well as part of a wider repairs team.
It would also be great if you have:
- Experience working within social housing or a responsive repairs environment.
- Additional construction trade qualifications.
- Experience using PDA systems or electronic job management systems.
- Knowledge of asbestos awareness and safe working practices.
Qualifications and requirements
You’ll need:
- A relevant construction trade qualification such as NVQ Level 2 or 3 in Bricklaying, or equivalent practical experience.
- UKATA Asbestos Awareness (or willingness to obtain this before employment).
- A full clean UK driving licence.
Why Join FCHO?
First Choice Homes Oldham is a housing association providing safe, affordable and high-quality homes across Oldham and the surrounding areas. We own and manage over 11,500 homes and have the highest regulatory (G1/V1) governance rating.
Every day we're proud to make a real difference in our communities.
Our work is guided by our Corporate Plan, focused on providing quality homes, excellent services and thriving communities. We care deeply about our customers, colleagues and neighbourhoods and are committed to improving lives across Oldham.
What's in it for you?
We offer a fantastic range of benefits designed to support your wellbeing, work-life balance and career development, including:
- A competitive salary.
- A 37-hour working week.
- 30 days' annual leave plus 8 bank holidays.
- Option to purchase additional annual leave.
- Defined contribution pension scheme with up to 10% employer contribution and salary exchange option.
- Death in service benefit.
- Healthcare cash plan covering dental, optical and physiotherapy treatments.
- Private health insurance.
- Employee Assistance Programme offering 24-hour confidential support.
- Doctorline, giving you and your family 24/7 GP access.
- Access to our colleague benefits platform, including retail discounts and wellbeing tools.
- Discounted gym membership.
- Enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption and sick pay.
- Long service awards.
Interested?
If you’re a skilled builder who takes pride in delivering high-quality repairs and wants to help maintain safe, sustainable homes for our customers, we’d love to hear from you.
Please submit your application before Sunday 26th July 2026
Please note that we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
We are committed to building an organisation that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills, and we are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. As an equal opportunities employer, FCHO is committed to the equal treatment of all current and prospective colleagues and does not condone discrimination on the basis of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership.
We aspire to have a diverse and inclusive workplace and strongly encourage suitably qualified applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply and join us.
We care that you have a great experience with us at FCHO. If you need us to make any reasonable adjustments to make your experience smoother, please let us know and we’ll do all we can.
