Laura Stone, COO at Greencore Homes explores building communities for the future as well as the barriers women face in the housebuilding industry
ou started your career as a lawyer before moving into housebuilding and now taking on the role of COO at Greencore Homes. Can you tell us about that journey and what drew you into the property industry?
I was appointed Chief Operating Officer at Greencore Homes in May 2023, and I’ve been fortunate to play a key role in accelerating the company’s strategic growth. Before stepping into the property industry, I worked at a top-tier London law firm.
In 2014, I made the move into the property industry, working as Director of Legal & Business Affairs at Pearce Fine Homes. With a family heritage deeply rooted in housebuilding, the move felt instinctive – an alignment of personal legacy and professional ambition.
Greencore’s vision is a perfect marriage of legacy and ambition. As leaders in our industry, we carry a responsibility to create high-quality, sustainable homes that will stand the test of time and serve future generations. I’m proud to be part of a business that’s pushing boundaries and that will hopefully make long lasting changes for the better. Our industry is well known for its heavy carbon footprint and by delivering Better than Net Zero homes we have a real opportunity to create a lasting legacy for the future.
Doing the right thing is important. We don’t only want to build 10,000 homes by 2035, but we also want to disrupt the industry and prove that we can, and we should be building better and healthier homes.
What challenges are there for women still to overcome in industry?
Despite some recent improvements, the property industry still has a long way to go when it comes to gender inequality, and this needs to change. We need to help women understand that this is an industry for everyone, with equal opportunities that enable progression.
The housebuilding industry, and particularly the construction trades, is still male dominated. I feel fortunate that I now work for a business that actively champions gender equality, with a female COO, CFO and Senior Site Manager, leading by example. I am particularly passionate about creating a workplace that supports and enables working parents. My own career has taken me in different directions, and like many women, I’ve experienced the constant juggle of raising children and trying to keep career momentum.
Greencore has set the ambitious target of building 10,000 Better Than Net Zero homes by 2035. How do you see the company achieving this goal, and what milestones have you set along the way?
We recognise the scale of the challenge, but we are committed to reaching our target of delivering 1,000 Better than Net Zero Homes annually. To achieve this, we have plans to expand our operations and business units, whilst ensuring that growth remains sustainable and aligned with our long-term objectives.
We have worked hard as a business to find practical, scalable solutions that make an impact.
Alongside that, we have also increased our team, growing from a team of 15 to over 50 employees during the last three years. To support our growth and meet our goals, we plan to scale up manufacturing operations, increase headcount, and further strengthen our pipeline of land opportunities and partnership deals.
While we are based in Oxfordshire, we are actively exploring opportunities across the Midlands and South-East of England, with plans to extend our reach across the whole country in the coming years.
Read the full interview in our latest issue here
