Young roofers will be put to the test this summer as they look to secure a place at the final of SkillBuild 2015.
From today (May 7) until July 29, the 49 competitors will take part in one of the seven regional heats taking place around the country. This year’s heats are:
| May 7 | Newcastle College |
| May 29 | Bolton College |
| June 5 | Leeds College of Building |
| June 16 | South Lanarkshire College |
| June 17 | Angus College (Arbroath) |
| July 28 | NCC Birmingham (King’s Norton) |
| July 29 | Cornwall College (St Austell) |
Competitors will have a maximum of six hours to install underlay, battens and natural slates to a roofing rig, during which time their work will be overseen by an independent judge who will be checking accuracy and adherence to the rig plans, drawings and health and safety regulations.
The marking scheme has been devised by the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC), which says the entrants may find it difficult to score high marks, as they will have to work to tight tolerances.
The heats will be supported by supplier members of the NFRC, who will provide the materials required for the competition free of charge. This year will see SIG Roofing supply 7,000 natural slates, 210kg of nails, and 50m of underlay, while SR Timber will supply 1,750m of timber battens.
SkillBuild is a national competition that takes place annually to promote excellence amongst the UK’s young crafts persons across ten craft occupations, of which roofing is one. The final of the competition will take place in November 2015.
