A slating apprentice from South Lanarkshire College (SLC), who is currently working at Owens LRJ Roofing, has won the inaugural ‘Great British Slate Off’.
Jordan Maley was one of six student slaters from colleges across the country who competed head-to-head at the National Federation of Roofing Contractor’s (NFRC) competition on 9 and 11 November at the Centre for Roofing Excellence (CoRE) in Hereford.
The slaters, who had each won initial heats at their colleges, had to show their skills in accordance with a strict specification and within time constraints. They were judged by the NFRC’s national judges and IFD mentors, Bob Coutts and Matt Timby, who were looking for craft knowledge, hand skills, precision and time management.
Jordan has won an all-expenses paid trip to Spain with his tutor to visit one of CUPA PIZARRAS’ quarries, as well as a free City & Guilds Traditional Basic Leadwork craft course, courtesy of the Lead Sheet Training Academy (LSTA).
He will also be awarded the Mason-Elliot Award by the Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers, and will be considered for the GB team for the IFD World Championship for Young Roofers.
Commenting on the prize, Jordan’s tutor Ross Hepburn, from South Lanarkshire College, said: “Firstly, I would like to say a massive congratulations to Jordan on his performance last week – the standard of work on show by all competitors was fantastic, and this must have been an extremely difficult task for the judges.
“Jordan showed that all his hard work, both in college and on-site under guidance from his employer, Owens LRJ Roofing and the SLC Roofing Department, has been well worth the effort.
“Here at South Lanarkshire College, we encourage all students to participate in competitions in all trades. To win the Great British Slate Off competition has certainly been a highlight of a trying past few years. Now we are hopefully nearing the end of the pandemic, I hope competitions like this will become a normal part of the college calendar again, as they are certainly worthwhile in allowing students to showcase their work across the nation.”
NFRC’s training manager Simon Dixon added: “Due to the lack of a SkillBuild/World Skills competition for 2021, NFRC’s technical and training team, including national judges, Bob Coutts, Matt Timby and Andy Rowlands, made plans for competition continuity.
“Andy offered his training facility, Centre of Roofing Excellence at Hereford for the venue. The colleges and training centres were keen to hold their own internal heat and put forward their winning student for the finals. Alan Bessford from Newcastle College came up with the competition name, but sadly was unable to participate this year.
He concluded: “The marking and final scores were extremely close, as you would expect for young roofers of such high calibre. It was a tough job for Bob and Matt to judge. My congratulations go out to Jordan and his tutor Ross – this is a fantastic achievement. My personal thanks also go to Andy and his team at CoRE, to the whole NFRC team, the sponsors, the tutors and the competitors themselves and their companies for releasing them to participate.”
