Q. What qualifications route did you take to realise your career?
City & Guilds Craft and Advanced Craft and 25 years industry experience.

Q. Please explain what students will learn during your course?
Students will learn practical hand skills as well as the theory behind bricklaying.  

Q. What’s the first thing you teach your students?
Health and Safety, you’re not going to get very far if you have an accident!  Backs are a problem in this trade, so we teach kinetic lifting techniques. Then you can start to learn how to use the tools.
 
Q. What qualities do you need to succeed in your industry?
It’s a hand’s on job so you need to be an active, practical person. It helps if you like making models, bricklaying is visual and you need to have an artistic eye and to be proud of what you’ve built. Time management is crucial and you need to be punctual.

Q. What are the benefits of studying your subject?
Learning a trade and getting a job. You can earn a good living. It varies but on average a brick layer earns about £120 a day.

Q. Please explain why you love your subject?
I like building things and doing a good job. It’s great when other people notice what I’ve done; it makes me feel proud and satisfied.  

Q. What skills do your students have by the end of the course?
Students should have a good grounding in the basics, and be able to build garden walls and porches, as well as working on site to do back up and some face work.

Q. What do students normally do once they’ve finished their course?
They either get a job or back into Further Education. Some of the best bricklayers work their way up by watching and learning from colleagues. It may be a slower route, but it can be the best.

Q. Can you describe a typical day in your working life?
I’m in College by 7.30am to prepare for lessons. I have a daily plan and like to tell the students what they will be doing. It doesn’t matter if it doesn’t work quite work out, it’s better to be sidetracked if it’s relevant and beneficial. At the end of the day I like to round up and reflect with the students on what they’ve learned. And I always have a plan B, just in case.

Q. What advice do you have for people interested in studying a course like yours?
Apply to the College straight away and look out for the open days. The best people to tell you how good a course is, is the other students who’ve done it. Don’t be scared to ask questions.