Top UK Roofing Apprentices Battle it Out at SkillBuild 2025 Final - Winners Update

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THE WINNERS of the 2025 SkillBuild National Final have been announced.

The top eight roof slating and tiling apprentices from across England and Scotland were tested on their technical skills, precision and craftsmanship at this year’s competition.

The roof slating and tiling SkillBuild winners are:

1^st – Samuel Jinks – Leeds College of Building, Dalton Roofing
2^nd – Levente Szasz – Leeds College of Building, Dalton Roofing
3^rd – Mark Knight – Simian Risk, Greenough & Sons

David Mallory, Roofing Tutor to Samuel and Levente at Leeds College of Building, congratulated both students and their employer Dalton Roofing on their ‘fantastic achievement’ and says the results are in line with Leeds College of Building’s records which have previously seen lots of winners across many different competitions.

Held at the Arena MK in Milton Keynes from 18-20 November 2025, the roof slating and tiling competition is organised by the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC).

After six regional heats at UK roofing colleges, the finals saw roofing apprentices completing an 18-hour project to precise technical specifications set by the judges.

Apprentices had to complete two roofing rig areas, one in plain clay tiles and one in slate. New to this year’s competition, apprentices had to also install solar brackets to their rigs – an element judges have introduced following the new mandate requiring rooftop solar on all new homes from 2027.

Testing the young roofers’ both physically and mentally, judges were on the look out for keen attention to detail and strict adherence to health and safety.

SkillBuild 2025 finalists working on their rigs under the watchful eye of judge, Bob Coutts

Judging Attention to Detail

Judging the competition were roofing experts, Bob Coutts, Andy Rowlands and Matt Timby.

Andy Rowlands, NFRC Vice President, said: “One of the key qualities we’re looking for this year is versatility, and attention to detail is also very important. The key will be for the apprentices to take their time and not immediately rush into it when given the spec.

He added, “There’s a big regional mix this year so the apprentices have a lot of different experience. For example, in Scotland they usually nail directly onto the sarking board instead of using battens. It’s interesting to see the regional differences in approaching the same task.”

Commenting on the high level of technical challenges demanded in this year’s competition, Steve Dowell, Roofing Tutor at Exeter College, said: “These guys are the very best apprentices who are excelling in their sector; they understand why we do it, and not just how we do it, and that’s why they’ll go on to do truly excellent things.”

Two of the SkillBuild 2025 competitors working on their rigs