Lucy Brailsford, 25, took a different route. Teacher training, then labouring, opened the door to a carpentry qualification. Her goals are classic chippy: get qualified, buy and renovate her first home, then one day design and build the family place. In 2025 she placed second in the regional New Zealand Certified Builders apprentice of the year.

Together they illustrate the success BCITO has achieved in attracting more women into trades roles and apprenticeships. Six per cent of BCITO apprentices starting out are now women, up from less than one per cent five years ago. Numbers of young women participating in the BCITO Gateway programme for school students have doubled since 2022, while women doing apprenticeships have nearly quadrupled from 52 to 205.

However, there’s still a long way to go. Just three per cent of tradies across the whole construction sector in New Zealand are women. By 2040, the sector goal is to increase women in construction trades roles to 30 per cent.

Meanwhile, a new New Zealand Chinese Building Industry Association report highlights retention is a significant issue for the whole industry. More than a third of workers have been in their roles less than a year, and just 6 per cent remain more than five years.

”The report also highlights what we’ve been saying for a long time – that demand for new construction is going to come back, and it’s essential we have enough qualified tradies to meet that demand. Boosting recruitment and improving retention through targeted support for all kinds of workers are equally important,” says Greg Durkin, Director of BCITO.

All of this is behind BCITO’s new Actions Speak Louder initiative, to help attract more women into the trades and ensure they’re well supported to stay. Under the initiative, BCITO has partnered with organisations such as Dignity, Hirepool, NZ Safety Blackwoods, Queens Workwear, Cleanline Tasman and TrainHer to provide free period products, sanitary bins, and injury-prevention programmes along with discounted portaloos and women’s workwear.

That kind of support is often vital. Haley was lucky to have an early introduction to the trades through her school’s Gateway programme, along with guidance that gave her confidence to get started.

“Having a mentor, I can ring any time has been huge, and learning safer techniques early on meant I could do the same work as everyone else without wrecking my body. Being in a room full of women doing big things made it feel possible,” she says.

Having the National Association of Women in Construction also recognise her as a 2025 Rising Star has helped boost that confidence further.

Lucy is thrilled to see women’s representation in the industry growing, with more avenues for girls to learn a trade that weren’t available when she was going through high school.

“I believe they have a lot more opportunities now with Gateway programmes, for example. However, the key to inclusion for me is about the culture employers provide for the team. Every apprentice will have a different version of what inclusivity looks like, but finding the right employer is what makes the difference. No day really looks the same as a builder and that’s why I love it.”

BCITO is keen to see more women enjoy rewarding careers in the trades. For more info on Lucy and Haley’s story and the support available visit- https://bcito.org.nz/women/building-women/. To offer your services as part of the Actions Speak Louder programme, visit https://bcito.org.nz/women/actions-speak-louder/