As National Apprenticeship (NAW) is taking place from 10th to 16th February to uplift apprenticeships and the value they bring, TTA wishes to use the opportunity to spotlight tiling apprenticeships and their importance for both the apprentice and the employer.
TTA members play a crucial role in delivering tiling apprenticeship schemes. For individuals, a tiling apprenticeship is an effective way to gain hands-on experience working alongside industry professionals, as well as ‘earn while you learn’. For employers, Government funding incentives make apprenticeships a cost-effective way to close skills gaps and create a job-ready workforce.
A New Industry Partnership Launches
Topps Tiles is partnering with South and City College Birmingham (SCCB) and Leeds College of Building to sponsor their Level 2 Wall & Floor Tiling apprenticeship schemes. This new nationwide programme aims to help tiling apprentices across the UK, with either of these colleges managing all the training for your apprentice.
There will be launch events on Friday 14th February at both training colleges. TTA Technical & Training Manager Martin Pouncey is attending SCCB and TTA Board Director and Training Committee Chair David Rowley is attending Leeds College of Building on behalf of The Tile Association, alongside industry press & contacts, local media and dignitaries.
Find out more from the Topps Tiles website.
Go Behind the Scenes with Open Doors this March
Delivered by Build UK, Open Doors takes young people and career changers behind the scenes to showcase the fantastic range of careers available in tiling and other construction industries, with hundreds of events expected to participate from Monday 17th–Saturday 22nd March 2025.
The ARDEX Group will be opening doors for visitors. There will be two sessions per day from 10am to 12pm and 2pm to 4pm across the sites of TTA members Building Adhesives Ltd (BAL) and ARDEX UK, both part of the ARDEX Group:
- Building Adhesives Ltd in Stoke-on-Trent – 17th and 20th March
- ARDEX UK in Haverhill – 18th and 19th March
College students and members of the public will be able to discover all about the tiling, flooring and general construction sectors. Sign up now.
Get Involved in SkillBuild 2025
On 28th and 30th January, TTA Technical & Training Manager Martin Pouncey visited Leeds College of Building and Cardiff and Vale College to give talks to prospective apprentices on the benefits of joining as a tile apprentice!
At these training centres, Martin handed the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners of SkillBuild 2024 their certificates, rewarding fantastic achievement from young tiling talent. Delivered by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), TTA is proud to be a sponsor of this excellent competition for apprentices and full-time learners in the UK along with TTA members Building Adhesives Ltd, N&C Nicobond and Schlüter-Systems.
If you are an apprentice or employ one, to be in with a chance of winning SkillBuild 2025 click to register now.
TTA Board Director and Training Committee Member Anthony Parrott Comments
Anthony Parrott, TTA Board Director and member of TTA’s Training Committee, comments: ‘One of the biggest issues facing our industry is labour shortages. I think it is therefore imperative that all companies have a dedicated apprentice programme to train the next generation of skilled tilers.
‘We at W.B. Simpson & Sons (Midlands) Ltd have had an apprentice programme for nearly 20 years. It started with James Mason in 2006 who joined us as a 16 year-old and is still with us.
‘Today, he is capable of carrying out all porcelain and stone works including swimming pools, and we believe he is one of the best tilers in the country. The following year, Shanbir Grewall joined us along with Mark Maguire as 18 and 16 year-olds, respectively. Both progressed to become very skilled tilers capable of holding down large commercial projects. Over the last 4 years, Mark has progressed to be our Senior Contracts Manager, running several jobs at a time, some up to a value of £2,000,000. We have also taken on the sons of some of our senior tilers as the next generation of apprentices, which is great to see.
‘While it takes effort, time and money to have an apprentice programme, it has been very successful for us and a worthwhile investment. As a Managing Director I would argue it was not only essential for us to do this but very rewarding to see the apprentices progress through to highly skilled tilers. I would strongly recommend those not yet taking on apprentices to begin as soon as possible. If you need any help or guidance, feel free to contact me as I firmly believe this is an important focus for our industry.’
TTA provides free training support for all members. Email training@tile.org.uk or call 0300 365 8453.
