February 2022

Industry News
NEW LEAD COURSES
PLANNED FOR DMG
Darren McGhee (centre) at the official opening of the
DMG Academy of Roofing.
The DMG Academy of Roofing, which
recently opened its doors on Strathclyde
Business Park in Bellshill, North
Lanarkshire, is now set to offer Lead
Welding courses alongside its Roof Slating
and Tiling courses.
Founded by Darren McGhee, Managing Director
of DMG Services Group, to provide preapprentice
training for school-leavers, who will
then progress to an apprenticeship with DMG
Services Group alongside training at South
Lanarkshire College, the facility has gone from
strength to strength. Darren explained: “It’s
going great – we’ve had a number of enquiries
and are bringing kids in in small groups so they
don’t get lost in large numbers, and I can keep
an eye on them and see how they develop.”
Looking to expand the Academy’s offering and
use the fantastic facilities to their full potential,
Darren has brought on board Lead Specialist
Craig McCamley, Owner of CJM Leadwork
Specialists, and is working with LSTA to
become a City & Guilds accredited satellite
centre for training in Scotland.
Darren continued: “I want to cover all bases
through the Academy for the individuals and
our company – if we’ve got the Roof Tiling &
Slating, the Lead Courses, my plan is then to
eventually offer Solar PV courses as well, so we
can offer the full pitched roofing package. It’s
good for the apprentices, my team, the
company and the wider industry.” Find out
more about the DMG Academy of Roofing:
www.dmgservicesgroup.co.uk/training/
More news, updates and interviews at www.total-contractor.co.uk
NEW ROOFING CAREERS SERVICE FROM NFRC
NFRC has launched the NFRC
Roofing Careers Service.
This free online resource is said to be
aimed at young people, career
changers and employers, and NFRC
says it was created to help tackle the
chronic skill shortages in the roofing
and cladding industry by placing
roofing careers information, guidance
and links to other useful resources in
one central place.
The NFRC says the new service aims to tackle
skill shortages both by attracting new people into
the sector and helping employers to recruit, and
has been launched following NFRC’s State of the
Roofing Industry Survey for Q3 2021 which found
that over three quarters (77 per cent) of roofing
contractors were experiencing recruitment
difficulties.
The Roofing Careers Service website is completely
free to use and is open to both NFRC members
and non-members alike, as well as young people,
parents, teachers and career-switchers.
The Careers Service is split into the following
categories:
First steps on the ladder (getting in): this is
aimed at young people and their influencers,
providing them with clear careers advice,
encouragement and signposting.
Holding the ladder for others (employer’s
portal): this is aimed at employers to help them
to build their businesses, take on an apprentice or
trainee, and recruit in an inclusive way.
Later in the year, NFRC says two extra sections on
career progression (Climbing the ladder) and
leadership and other professional roles (Rooftops)
will be launched.
The Careers Service website includes real-life
roofing career case studies and job profiles
showing the breadth of roles in roofing from
Above: Ruth Scarrott, Head of
Careers at NFRC.
apprentices, to estimators, to
Managing Directors.
For employers, NFRC says the
website includes many free
resources, including job descriptions,
basic financial planning templates,
advice on employment contracts,
links to grants and funding
opportunities.
On top of the free online portal, NFRC
members also have access to tailored support
and advice on recruitment, employment and
training.
Commenting on the launch of the Roofing Careers
Service, Ruth Scarrott, NFRC Head of Careers,
said: “Our industry has so many great career
opportunities, and we want to showcase this –
that is why we have created a dedicated Roofing
Careers Service. Whilst there are already a
plethora of resources on careers in construction,
these are spread across lots of different places,
which can make it confusing for a young person
and are often not roofing specific. The Roofing
Careers Service aims to tackle this by putting
everything related to roofing careers in one central
place that can be easily accessed. We will be
working with the CITB and other strategic partners
to join the dots for career pathways into our
fantastic industry. Through this collaborative
effort, we hope to attract many more young people
to our sector.”
She concluded: “We know that over three quarters
of roofing contractors are experiencing
recruitment difficulties at this time, and that is
why helping employers is an equally important
part of the Roofing Careers Service. Whether it is
supporting roofing contractors to grow their
business, recruit the best talent, or ensure their
teams are diverse and inclusive, the Roofing
Careers Service is there to help.”
Read more from Ruth on page 20 as she dispels
the key myths concerning recruiting apprentices.
8 TC FEBRUARY 2022