Birmingham based social housing recruitment agency expands with support from Business Growth West Midlands
Published: 20 August 2025
A recruitment agency is set to double its workforce and help play a role in boosting social housing across the region with backing from Business Growth West Midlands.
The support from BGWM is part of Mayor Richard Parker’s bold initiative to fire up the regional economy will empower the agency to expand its operations, taking on more staff to support the sector.
Birmingham-based Niyaa People works with some of the UK’s leading social housing associations and has already placed more than 5,000 professionals, from engineers to electricians, into jobs.
Now, after securing support from BGWM, the company has been able to scale up own its operations still further, moving to bigger offices and taking on another six full time staff.
And CEO Dal Shoker is planning to grow his workforce from 60 to 120 over next three years.
The backing being offered to the region’s businesses by BGWM, which is run by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), is part of the Mayor’s Growth Plan – a blueprint to fire up the regional economy.
The Plan includes targeted support for local firms and has identified professional and financial services as one of five high growth sectors that have the potential to power the regional economy in the years ahead.
Pictured: Dal Shoker, CEO of Niyaa People, with Mayor Richard Parker at the launch of the Mayor’s Growth Plan
Niyaa People began in 2008 and is part of the legion of successful local firms that have helped establish the West Midlands as the UK’s biggest business, professional and financial services hub outside of London.
By working alongside some of UK’s leading social housing associations, more than 100 of which are based in the Midlands, Niyaa People has built a strong reputation for matching skilled professionals with roles in the sector – meeting the hiring needs of associations such as Midland Heart, Citizen Housing and Bournville Village Trust.
The company has built up a network of housing professionals such as tradespeople, site managers, operations managers and directors, who are ready to be deployed across the region.
By providing a pipeline of skilled staff into the social housing sector, their operations are also helping with the Mayor’s mission to kickstart the biggest social housing programme the region has seen in decades, which will change the lives of thousands of families stuck in temporary accommodation.
The Mayor said:
Our business community is the lifeblood of our economy, and its success is key to making the West Midlands a great place to live, work, and do business.
By investing in specialist recruitment agencies like Niyaa People who have a deep knowledge of their sector, we can ensure that the right people can be matched with the right employer.
It’s why my Growth Plan includes a focus on giving businesses the funding and support they need to expand, create jobs, and drive our economy forward.
Dal Shoker, CEO Niyaa People said:
As a growing local company that employs local people, moving to our expanded office marks an exciting new chapter for Niyaa People. The grant funding has been instrumental in helping us to hiring more people and in supporting our commercial fit-out.
Through initiatives like our People in Housing podcast and roundtables with sector thought leaders, we’re helping to spark meaningful conversations that can shape the future of housing.
As a proud Birmingham-based business, we are deeply committed to contributing to the social housing sector – not only by providing highly skilled staff, but also by bringing fresh ideas, insight, and value to the industry. Our mission is simple. To help change the housing landscape for the better.
Kul Sanghera, BGWM Birmingham & Solihull Account Manager said:
We are delighted to be working with such an innovative and high growth business as Niyaa People. I have an excellent relationship with Dal, we meet regularly to look at further opportunities to support their ambitious growth plans.
We are currently helping them with embedding a new customer relationship management system and further support from the Business Energy Advice Service (BEAS) grant.
Case study: Baljit Dhariwal and Midland Heart
Housing association Midland Heart approached Niyaa People for help recruiting a ranger – a hands-on role that involves, maintaining communal areas and ensuring neighbourhoods remain safe and tidy for residents.
Consultant Luke Fenton worked with Midland Heart to find someone for the role and put forward Baljit Dhariwal, recognising that even though he didn’t have the experience, he had the potential to learn and succeed in the job.
Pictured: Mayor Richard Parker with neighbourhood ranger Baljit at a Midland Heart social housing block in Walsall
Unemployed at the time, Baljit had been struggling to find work but Luke helped him secure a three-month contract. That proved to be a life-changing moment, as Baljit has now secured a permanent job with the company.
He said “A friend put me in touch with Luke at Niyaa People and within hours I had an interview booked for the next day. Since joining Midland Heart I feel like I’ve made a real difference to local communities, and I’m so thankful to both Niyaa People and Midland Heart for giving me this opportunity and for their support during my transition back into employment.”
Pictured above: Luke Fenton consultant (Niyaa people), Mayor Richard Parker, Baljit Dhariwal neighbourhood ranger (Midland Heart), Dal Shoker CEO (Niyaa People) and Kevin Trevithick, team leader (Midland Heart)
Kieran Morris, Resourcing Manager at Midland Heart, added: “Since joining us, Baljit has been a great asset to our Housing Management team, helping us to deliver an excellent service to our tenants and ensuring our neighbourhoods remain safe and clean spaces.”
Pictured above: Baljit in action in his role as neighbourhood ranger
BGWM was set up by the WMCA and is run in partnership with its seven local authority members.
The service is helping to drive the Mayor’s Growth Plan by providing thousands of SMEs with tailored packages to help them grow, adopt digital technologies, transition to new supply chains, and access funding.
The Growth Plan has been drawn up by the Mayor and the WMCA in partnership with leaders from the region’s public and private sectors to deliver the Mayor's key priorities –growth for everyone, jobs for everyone, homes for everyone and journeys for everyone.
The 10-year plan is set to reboot the region’s economy, by unlocking tens of thousands of new jobs, building a bigger and more skilled workforce, and raising living standards for local people.
