Try to achieve the best grades you can. As a qualified Carpenter or Joiner, you will have the opportunity to work anywhere in the world.
Derek started working at Lancaster & Morecambe College in 2006 after a career that took him all over the world in the joinery industry. When he returned to the UK, he decided to take up teaching as a way to share his expertise with the next generation of joiners.
His career began in the North East, and he eventually moved to London, where he specialized in shop fitting and applied his skills to revamp spaces in the city.
I decided to look further afield and emigrated to New Zealand, where I worked as a boat builder. From there, I moved around the area, including Australia and Hong Kong, working for a company that fitted out all the Louis Vuitton shops in the southern hemisphere. Louis Vuitton is still a proud sponsor of the America’s Cup Challenger Series, and the most luxurious shop I fitted for them was a £6 million store in Auckland, Australia, on the harbor side, where we had an amazing view of all the yachts taking part in the race.
Throughout the years, Derek has practiced and refined his trade in various environments, which he can now share with learners and guide them in their future careers. When asked about the best part of being a tutor at LMC, Derek said:
I really enjoy passing on my joinery experiences and skills to the students, as well as watching them develop into good citizens. I also enjoy working with all the professional staff here at LMC.
If you are contemplating whether or not to join the course, Derek advises:
Try to achieve the best grades you can. As a qualified Carpenter or Joiner, you will have the opportunity to work anywhere in the world.
Try to achieve the best grades you can. As a qualified Carpenter or Joiner, you will have the opportunity to work anywhere in the world.
Welding particularly is like lego for adults – its great fun making things. Whereas Engineering will teach you why things are made the way they are and a combination of both will give you the skills to make almost anything you can think of! Why not give it a go!
Be prepared to work hard and be challenged. The more you put in, the more you will get out of the course. It's a rewarding experience as you can clearly see your skills develop. There is also a great demand for skilled plasterers and the potential for good earnings, so why not give it a go?
Whether you're confident that you want to be a plumber/gas engineer, think you want to try your hand at it, or have no idea what you want to do - plumbing or gas work is an excellent asset for anyone to have. They're both great career options, loved by foreign countries if you're looking to travel, or at the very least will save you some money on a plumber in the future no matter what you end up doing!
Come and join us here as LMC! You’ll gain new skills, use industry standard equipment, be taught by a dedicated team of specialists who are passionate about educating you to a higher skills level, so that you can gain an Apprenticeship or full time employment.
My favourite part of my role is being able to recall my industry knowledge and then passing it onto my students. The knowledge I have from working in the industry gives the students a better understanding of real life situations and how to transfer their skills into future careers.