Choice Housing, one of Northern Ireland’s largest housing associations, has announced its participation in the SistersIN leadership development programme, an initiative designed to empower 16-to-18-year-old female mentees by unlocking their leadership potential and building workplace confidence.
Through this engagement, nine women from across the Choice Group will serve as mentors to young women, supporting them through a six-month programme running from October 2026 to April 2027.
With a 50-year history and a dedicated team of over 500 professionals, Choice continues its commitment to empowering people and strengthening local communities.
SistersIN creates an ecosystem connecting schools, organisations, and women in the workplace to help young women aged 16-18 build leadership skills and, gain workplace insights and develop essential transferable skills. The programme integrates structured leadership modules, mentorship, a mentee-led leadership project, and a dedicated ‘A Day with Your Mentor’
Group Director of Corporate Services, Lawrence Jackson said,
“We are proud to have nine of our colleagues participating in the SistersIN leadership development programme this year. Empowering the next generation of female leaders aligns with our values of community support and personal development. Driven by community investment, Choice has a strong track record of collaborating with like-minded organisations to open new opportunities for young people.”
"By sharing real-world workplace experiences, practical guidance, and support throughout their projects, our team looks forward to helping these young women build confidence, discover their potential, build confidence and develop transferable leadership skills."
As part of the programme, the mentors from Choice will engage in five virtual one-to-one sessions with their mentees, welcome their mentees for ‘A Day with Your Mentor’ in February 2027, and support their mentees ahead of the programme’s celebration event in April 2027.
Ella Rourke, Partnership Manager from SistersIN said,
“We are delighted to welcome nine colleagues from Choice to this year’s SistersIN programme. Our mentors play a vital role in helping young women understand their own leadership strengths, build confidence and develop skills that will support them throughout their personal and professional journeys.
The opportunity to learn directly from women with different experiences, roles and perspectives is a hugely valuable part of the SistersIN experience. We look forward to seeing the relationships develop over the coming months and the impact this experience will have on both our mentees and their mentors.”
Choice mentors taking part include:
· Ruth Cunningham – Head of HR
· Patricia Bond – Senior HR Officer
· Niamh McBride – Area Manager
· Shona Burke – Head of Customer Service Operations
· Hannah Kenny – Senior Development Officer
· Courtney Scates – Area Manager
· Monica Genney – Development Manager
· Emma McCullagh – Senior Development Officer
· Jenny Mawhinney – Marketing and Communications Officer
With a staff of c500 people, Choice provides a mix of supported, sheltered and general needs housing across Northern Ireland, providing over 14,000 homes across the region.
