BMI Apprentice of the Year 2024 Winners Announced

TWO ROOFING APPRENTICES have been awarded the title of BMI Apprentice of the Year 2024 following two days of competition. The winners received a cash prize and unlocked hands-on training to support their future development.

The BMI Apprentice of the Year competition, which is now in its eighth year, is designed to support the next generation of roofers to showcase and strengthen their skills and passion for the industry. This year, 18 apprentices made it to the final of the competition which took place at the BMI Academy over two days on 24th & 25th July.

BMI Apprentice of the Year 2024

Leah Stewart, an apprentice with Roof & Fibre and tutored by Brian Hutton at Fife College, was crowned the BMI Redland Apprentice of the Year for Pitched Roofing.

Robbie Gosden of Taylor Roofs and the National Construction College earned the top spot as BMI Icopal Apprentice of the Year for Flat Roofing.

Leah Stewart, winner in the pitched roofing category, said: “I want to thank my employers and my lecturers at Fife College for their support, as well as the fantastic team at BMI Redland BMI UK & Ireland who pulled off this amazing event giving me an opportunity of a lifetime. I’ve really enjoyed the competition and was so impressed with the other contestants.”

Robbie Gosden, winner in the flat roofing category, said: “I’m really pleased to have won. Everyone was at such a high standard I didn’t know what to expect. My boss, Jamie, has given me a real passion for quality and encouraged me to view each day as a learning opportunity and a chance to set myself up for a bright future within the construction industry.”

BMI Apprentice of the Year 2024 Highly Commended

Alongside the winners of this year’s competition, two apprentices received the highly commended award from the judges. They reflect the high standard of apprentices in this year’s final.

Taking home the Highly Commended awards were Samuel Jinks of Dalton Roofing and Leeds College of Building for the pitched category and Tommy Lee McGee of Sussex Asphalte and Simian Roofing Centre for flat.

“We were blown away by the standard on show at this year’s competition, as well as the passion and enthusiasm shown for our industry,” said Fraser Biles, Commercial Director at BMI. “Every finalist gave it their all across every stage of the competition and the judges had a tough job to whittle the candidates down to find this year’s winners.

“The theme of this year’s competition was ‘building new horizons’ and I can confidently say that every one of these apprentices has a bright future ahead of them. Leah and Robbie stood out in particular. Not only did they clearly demonstrate the skills they’ve learned in their roofing journeys so far, but it was clear to see their passion and eagerness to learn more at every opportunity.

“A huge congratulations to our 2024 Apprentices of the Year, and all the finalists who took part. We can’t wait to see where their careers take them!”

Roofing Careers

Praised by roofing industry employers and judges as a unique promotion of roofing as a rewarding and satisfying career, the BMI Apprentice of the Year competition takes place over two days at BMI’s training academy in South Cerney, Gloucestershire.

Roofing apprentices are tested not only on their roofing knowledge, but on wider professional skills of presentation, business aptitude, teamwork and communication skills. Apprentices often refer to the event as life-changing and judges remark on the transformative and confidence-building progress apprentices undergo during the event.

Hosted by Fraser Biles, BMI Commercial Director and Meghan Waller, Marketing Director, the awards ceremony took place at the Cotswold Water Park Hotel.

The 2024 BMI Apprentice of the Year Finalists were:

Pitched Roofing

• Joe Kemp, Eastern Region Roof Training Group Ltd, Iceni Roofing Limited
• Jake White, Eastern Region Roof Training Group Ltd, Schofield & Lait Roofing
• Mhairi Horne, Fife College, Roof and Fibre
• Leah Stewart, Fife College, Roof and Fibre
• Samuel Jinks, Leeds College of Building, Dalton Roofing Co.
• Cameron Larcombe, Newcastle College, Gentoo Group
• Connor Wilson, Optimum Skills Limited, Alexander Sinclair
• Evan Adams, South Devon College, Stormforce Roofing
• Nathan McKenzie, South Lanarkshire College, C3 Scotland Limited
• Tadhg Harries, South Wales and South West Roofing Training Group, RSM Roofing

Flat Roofing

• Robbie Gosden, National Construction College, Taylor Roofs
• Jack Ranger, SIMIAN, ASHLEY CONTRACTORS LTD
• Tommy Lee McGee, SIMIAN, Sussex Asphalte Ltd
• Leigh Bourne, SIMIAN, ARC Group
• Matthew Nichols, SIMIAN, MIDLAND ROOFING SERVICES (DERBY) LIMITED
• Corran Smith, Juniper, RIO ASPHALT & PAVING CO. LIMITED
• Jake Jones, Langley Training Services, Lynx Waterproofing Ltd
• Carter Miller, Langley Waterproofing, Amber Construction Services

>> Read more about BMI SOTY 2024 in the news