Experts hope that bringing together the most impressive young talent from across the country will not only prepare the next crop of housing leaders, but also safeguard the future of the industry.

As the brainchild of Share, a charity dedicated to learning and development across the property profession, the fledgling Young Housing Professionals’ Network has just notched up an important success.

More than 30 future leaders took part in a showpiece forum in Glasgow to identify the biggest hurdles facing them – including how to attract and retain the most talented people, dealing with the cost-of-living crisis and how to upgrade existing housing stock despite tough financial constraints.

Daryl McIntosh, chief executive officer of Share, told how the Network was formed last year, a highly prophetic move just months before the Scottish Government declared a housing emergency.

With increasing demands on the workforce, training and professional development has never been more vital to the under-pressure housing sector and Share is the leading provider of training in Scotland.

Daryl praised the energy and vibrancy of the Glasgow summit and said: “This demonstrated the value of bringing together fresh perspectives to tackle our industry’s most pressing challenges.

“By creating a space for emerging talent to connect and collaborate, we’re not just addressing current issues, we’re nurturing the leaders who will shape the future of housing.”

The day-long event, hosted by Nicola Dillon, an Investors in People practitioner and young people development consultant was also supported by Elderpark Housing Association and was held at their headquarters on Golspie Street in Glasgow.

Elderpark generously provided the venue free of charge, offering network members the chance to connect, share ideas, enhance their skills, and advance their careers in the housing sector.

Network members also used the event as an opportunity to discuss the challenges facing the sector –attendees were also treated to a presentation from Nicola.

Nicola said: “Our Young Housing Professionals’ network around sector challenges was a great success. The creative minds of our younger generations never cease to inspire me.

“The event left the network with an appetite for more opportunities to come together and share and learn best practices around sector challenges.”

While the network meets quarterly, members are also supported through an online forum, where they can share queries and ideas, collaborate and build relationships across the sector.

As a registered charity, Share invests all profits back into the services it provides, and has three key values, to be supportive, passionate and excellent in all that it does.

It also wants to build on its core function of serving housing associations, by broadening into the private rental sector, to help it prepare for increasing legal requirements and to improve services.

With increasing demands on the workforce, training and professional development have never been more vital to the under-pressure housing sector, with Share being the leading provider of training in Scotland.