A BURY mother and her daughter are helping take the sting out of the credit crunch by matching skilled workers with homeowners looking to make the most of their properties.

Both women already help to run a family window company through which they spotted a gap in the market for a “jack of all trades” workforce.

Myhandymancan.co.uk is the brainchild of Jill Oliviero and her daughter, Natalie Mortimer.

Jill explained: “Through our window company, Elite Windows and Conservatories, we were constantly getting requests from clients for our workforce to tackle other odd jobs around their homes.

“But because our window fitting teams were constantly booked up to move onto the next job, we couldn't provide clients with this service.

“This is what prompted us to develop myhandyman can.co.uk and recruit a whole new workforce to meet our clients’ needs.”

As soon as they started the recruitment process, the woman realised they were getting a high-calibre of tradesmen on their books. Jill said: “But it made sense because the recession meant they weren't getting as much work as they used to. So, they were happy to turn their hands to all sorts of other jobs to make their wages.”

The concept behind myhandymancan.co.uk is that customers pay an hourly rate for a worker to come to their house to complete all sorts of tasks. These embrace everything from putting up shelves, fixing blockages, clearing gutters, jet-washing drives and patios and minor electrical tasks.

Clients can make more savings by storing up tasks until they have enough to provide a workman with a half or full day of work, meaning the hourly rate is discounted even further.

Jill added: “Because most of our staff are skilled in one trade and proficient in others, it means our clients are getting professional services without having to pay a standard call-out fee.

“Our staff are police-checked and insured, so gives elderly clients peace of mind that they can trust whoever we send.”

Myhandymancan.co.uk covers all Greater Manchester. Monthly contracts are available.