SkillBuild Winner Sings the Praises of a Career in Roofing

JOSEPH Gallagher, SkillBuild national winner of the roof slating and tiling category in 2024 is recommending a career in roofing.

The endorsement comes amid a continuous need for the roofing sector to attract more young people for a rewarding career in the roofing sector, helping to tackle the growing labour skills gap.

SkillBuild, delivered by the Construction Industry Training board (CITB) and supported by roof systems manufacturer, Marley, is the largest multi-trade skills competition in the UK for construction trainees and apprentices.

A Career in Roofing

Joseph Gallagher beat five other roofing apprentices to claim the national title. He’s a keen advocate for the roofing trade. He said, “Roofing is a great career. I like the variety it offers and love working outside. It is really great to stand back at the end of a project to look at what has been achieved and see a happy customer.”

A third-generation roofer and studying at Bolton College, Joseph thinks the roofing industry has a bright future, offering many training, development and career building opportunities.

Solar Opportunities

He also believes the focus on renewable solutions, such as solar PV, will increase in importance with a growing need for a suitably trained roofing workforce: “With global warming and climate change issues, roofing has to help deliver a sustainable construction future through renewable solutions, such as solar.

“As demand from the public grows, more roofing professionals will need to be trained to install the technology. This opens up business opportunity for existing roofers, as well as those thinking of entering the industry.”

Joseph’s experience at SkillBuild is motivating him to further develop his burgeoning roofing career. He says: “It was a really good competition, and I even had my first time working with clay pantiles which I enjoyed.

“Looking ahead, I would urge other apprentices thinking about roofing as a career to do their research. Maybe look to join a smaller firm with the potential for one-to-one mentoring and seek out a wide variety of roofing work to build experience, confidence and skills.”

Training Support

As a supporter of SkillBuild, Marley is helping young and experienced roofers to learn new skills, such as solar PV installation, alongside traditional slate, pantile and concrete tile installation capabilities.

The company recently delivered its 100^th solar installation training day. The in-depth sessions offer a comprehensive overview of solar PV, how it works and how to design and set a solar PV system, as well as sharing practical installation training and tips to consider for more complex system arrays.

The proven success of Marley’s solar PV training complements the broad range of training support the company already provides for the industry. In addition to solar training, roofing professionals can access detailed support to gain roofing product knowledge, as well as build the skills for estimating the requirements of a roofing project.

Attracting Fresh Talent

Colin McCorquodale, NFRC President

Colin McCorquodale, President of the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC), witnessed Joseph Gallagher claim the number one roofing spot at SkillBuild. He believes the sector needs to work hard to attract and train roofers of the future just like Joseph.

“Our industry requires more skilled labour if we are to keep up with demand and successfully deliver evolving roofing technology solutions such as solar. The NFRC strives to attract fresh talent and initiatives such as SkillBuild, which help to showcase talented and committed apprentice roofers, are essential. Joseph is a role model to others thinking about roofing as a smart career choice.”

Colin also says obtaining roofing abilities will open doors of opportunity for young roofers. He says: “There’s the chance to learn a skill for life and one that can also be taken around the world. Our sector does have a bright future, but ensuring we have a pipeline of skilled labour is a key challenge and a priority for the NFRC.”

Renewables Opportunities

Kevin Taylor, Training and Technical Support Manager for Marley, comments: “Huge congratulations to Joseph who demonstrated his skills and talent against other roofing apprentices at SkillBuild. We believe that all stakeholders across the roofing sector need to prioritise new talent attraction and support so that together we can continue to build a skilled workforce of roofers.

“The ongoing expansion of roofing services to encompass renewable technologies, such as solar PV, means the sector offers roofing professionals the opportunity to work with both traditional roofing tiled solutions and exciting new technologies. Marley is delivering an extensive portfolio of in person and online training support and guidance, so that young roofers like Joseph, as well as his more experienced colleagues, make the most of the career and business building opportunities before them.”

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