How to Become a Plumber Scotland
If you are wondering how to become a plumber in Scotland, then we have outlined various options which are open to you…
There are several ways to start your career in plumbing. The most common options are:-
- Get a Plumbing Apprenticeship
- Complete a Fast Track Plumbers Training Course
- Become a Plumbers Mate
Getting a Plumbing Apprenticeship
Getting a plumbing apprenticeship is a very traditional route to become a plumber and gives you great experience over a traditional 4 year apprenticeship period where you not only gain an insight into every aspect of the job but also the tips and tricks which your mentoring plumbing does in order to get the job done in a safe and efficient manner. This is a great platform to establish all the skills necessary in order to become a plumber and be able to walk away with the confidence and knowledge that you have all the skills and practical application necessary to go it alone.
There are definite pros and cons to getting an apprenticeship. Especially in the current climate where there are less and less business taking apprentices on. In fact, the demand for plumbers always out strips the supply of plumbers mainly because there are not enough apprenticeships offered to young people starting out their careers. The positive side of this is that once you are fully trained and qualified then your skills will always be in demand and you will always be able to earn a good living as a plumber.
First there is the traditional 4 year time frame required to become a fully trained plumber. This is a good time frame to be able to pick up all the skills that you will need to become a plumber and give you a great deal of experience working alongside skilled tradesmen on a variety of projects and settings. You might spend 2 weeks working on a big hotel project doing the same thing day in day out, then spend the next month doing 8 completely different jobs every single day. All the time, you are picking up valuable skills and insights into what tools you need, what is the most efficient way to do a job and various ways you can carry out the same job. However, it is still a long time to be on the reduced wages that apprentices get.
Plumbing apprenticeships are normally only offered to 16-21 year olds. So if you are a mature adult wishing to change career then this opportunity is rarely available to you and you also probably wouldn’t be able to get by on the lower wages offered, especially if you have a house, car and a family to support.
Another great benefit to getting a plumbing apprenticeship is the scope of experience that it gives you. Usually you will be exposed to all aspects of plumbing and also domestic heating systems allowing you to become Gas Safe Registered once you complete your training to become a time served fully qualified, trained and experienced plumber who can then safely carry out all aspects of plumbing and heating work and would be a real asset to any future employer or can be self-employed.
Complete a Fast Track Plumbers Training Course
The alternative route to becoming a plumber is to complete your fast track training course. Although these courses do not cover the vast training and experience which a plumbing apprenticeship would give you, the time required in order to complete them is significantly less therefore allowing you to become a fully qualified and skilled plumber is a quarter of the time frame.
If you are too old to be offered a plumbing apprenticeship or you want to become a fully trained and qualified plumber as quickly as possible then the fast track plumbing course is a great option for you.
Once you complete your training and are awarded your relevant certification, you then become a valuable asset to any plumbing company hiring plumbers or gas safe registered heating engineers.
Another benefit is that you can also choose which courses you want to do. If you wish to become a plumber and do you City and Guilds Qualifications then you can choose exactly which courses which want to do.
You might want to complete your Plumbing and Domestic Heating Qualifications – (NVQ Level 2 plumbing and heating qualification)
And go on to be a domestic plumber. Alternatively, you may want to specialise as a gas engineer and deal with commercial boilers so you don’t have to do all the plumbing training. You can choose the path that you want to go down and only complete the necessary qualifications which are essential to give you the skills and training required for your chosen profession.
If you choose to complete a fast track plumbing training course, we recommend Skills Training Group, a reputable and local training company who specialise in training Plumbers, Gas Engineers and Electricians to industry standards in a safe and nurturing environment and provide them with the necessary qualifications to be fully employable upon their completion. The Skills Training Group have a variety of training courses to suit anybody wanting to be a fully qualified Plumber, Gas Safe Engineer or Electrician and have the option to do the training full-time or part time; daytime or evenings. This means that everybody has the option to either go full time or study around their work, family and home life if that suits better. You can be a fully qualified plumber in as little as 46 weeks. Something certainly worth considering compared to a 4 year apprenticeship.
Become a Plumbers Mate
Becoming a plumbers mate is again a more traditional route into training to become a plumber. A plumbers mate is essentially somebody who helps and assists the plumber is doing their work. Along the way, the plumbers mate will learn all the tools required and how to use them to safely and effectively do the work.
In time, the plumber would ask the plumbers mate to carry out the smaller jobs which they have been shown to do. Over time, as the skills and experience of the plumbers mate grows, then the plumber would ask them to do more and more work in order to assist the tradesmen.
There is nothing quite like starting at the bottom and working your way up to know a job inside out. However, like a plumbers apprentice, the role of the plumbers mate is usually a much lower rate of pay than a fully qualified tradesman.
However, these positions are becoming rare now and are often reserved for friends or family of the tradesman plumber doing the training.
Hi there my name is Ryan McGinlay I am 21 years young and I am currently looking for an apprenticeship even if there’s no vacancy’s available could you please give me a few tips and point me in the right direction. I have been trying to find an apprenticeship ever since I left school three years ago and not been successful but I am more determined now to follow my dreams than ever and not willing to give up just yet I would appreciate any advice. I believe I would fit well into a trade as I am used to long hours and being on my feet and heavy lifting.
Very aware of PPE and health and safety regulations as well as have worked a variety of shift patterns.
Sent from my iPhone
Hi Ryan,
Thank you for contacting us. That’s great that you want to be a plumber and you should definitely go for that if that is your goal. As outlined in the post, there are 3 ways to become a plumber so if you are having difficulty getting there one way, then look to one of the other methods to get to where you want to be and don’t give up if that’s what you want to do or you will regret it.
With regards to plumbing apprenticeships specifically, I know that from the recovery of lockdown and the Coronavirus it is a very difficult time for all businesses and plumbing companies are no exception. Many plumbers were furloughed and are only returning to their positions now so apprenticeships have not been a priority for most plumbing businesses at this time.
That being said, as we start to move forward we may change this set up and start taking on more apprentices again.
Although we are not taking anybody on right now, I have passed your details on to the boss and he will be in touch should circumstances change.
Thanks again for your post. I hope this helps you out and good luck in becoming a plumber.
Don’t give up and do whatever you need to do in order to move closer to your goals, whatever that might be.
Hi there my name is Ryan McGinlay I am 21 years young and I am currently looking for an apprenticeship even if there’s no vacancy’s available could you please give me a few tips and point me in the right direction. I have been trying to find an apprenticeship ever since I left school three years ago and not been successful but I am more determined now to follow my dreams than ever and not willing to give up just yet I would appreciate any advice. I believe I would fit well into a trade as I am used to long hours and being on my feet and heavy lifting.
Very aware of PPE and health and safety regulations as well as have worked a variety of shift patterns.
Hi Ryan,
Thank you for contacting us. That’s great that you want to be a plumber and you should definitely go for that if that is your goal. As outlined in the post, there are 3 ways to become a plumber so if you are having difficulty getting there one way, then look to one of the other methods to get to where you want to be and don’t give up if that’s what you want to do or you will regret it.
With regards to plumbing apprenticeships specifically, I know that from the recovery of lockdown and the Coronavirus it is a very difficult time for all businesses and plumbing companies are no exception. Many plumbers were furloughed and are only returning to their positions now so apprenticeships have not been a priority for most plumbing businesses at this time.
Currently, we are unable to take on any apprentices for this reason although we have taken all of our plumbers and heating engineers off of furlough and are very busy providing first class plumbing and heating services for Glasgow and the surrounding areas.
That being said, as we start to move forward we may change this set up and start taking on more apprentices again.
Although we are not taking anybody on right now, I have passed your details on to the boss and he will be in touch should circumstances change.
Thanks again for your post. I hope this helps you out and good luck in becoming a plumber.
Don’t give up and do whatever you need to do in order to move closer to your goals, whatever that might be.
Hi I work for.a legionella company and want to train as a plumber so I can carry out more plumbing tasks , the fast track course sounds good, I currently carry out various plumbing jobs at the moment but would like to be qualified and have be certified is this something you can offer thanks scott
Hi Scott, that is great you want to train to be a plumber. It is definitely one of the best careers you can do (although we are biased!!!). The world will always need a plumber and there is never a shortage of people for you to help out so it is a very rewarding career to do.
We have recently taken on a few fully qualified plumbers and heating engineers as well as admin staff. However, we haven’t been in the position to take on any apprentices or those wishing to learn on the job, however eager and skilled they are.
We are only taking on the very best tradesmen who are fully skilled, experienced and certified already so that they are ready to start working and doing jobs right away. I am very sorry that we are unable to help in this situation. It is our hope that we will have more time to train up apprentices in the future but at this time, we need fully qualified and time served experienced professionals to deal with all the jobs that we send them to every day.
We certainly hope that you continue to pursue your career as a plumber and look for other opportunities. We all know that now is not a great time to be looking for any employment and especially not when you don’t have the necessary skills and qualifications. However, keep on looking and pursuing your dream job and it will pay off. There are always opportunities out there for the most dedicated.
Good luck and hopefully we will be able to employ you at a later stage when you are fully qualified and have the necessary experience.
I am looking for an opportunity to change my career. I will like to know if someone of my age have a chance.
Hi Adexosiguwa, it is nice to see that you want to become a plumber. It is indeed a great profession to be in. In answer to your question, does anybody your age have a chance of being a plumber? Firstly, I would say yes. Assuming that you are over 16, then you have every chance of being a plumber. there is certainly no reason why you couldn’t be. In this post, we mention the 3 ways which you can become a plumber. look into these options and follow your heart.
In your question, you failed to mention exactly how old you are but I would assume that you are 16 or older. If you are younger than 16, then by all means learn whatever you can about being a plumber by reading books, watching videos online, asking a plumber if you can assist in their duties.
Hi.
Firstly, please let us know what age you are?
Secondly, you always have a chance.
As long as you are willing to put in the time and dedication to do the hard work, there is no reason you can’t be a great plumber.
Nice tips on how to be a plumber. This is my dream job. Cheers Raymond
Are you looking for plumbers?
Hi Paul. We are always looking for the best plumbers around. However, you must be a fully qualified, gas safe registered, experienced plumber with all the relevant documentation to prove this.
As well as your plumbing skills being the envy of all other tradesmen…
You must also possess great interpersonal skills to be able to communicate with our customers.
You must be trust worthy with excellent time keeping.
You must be presentable at all times and keep yourself, your van and your workspace clean and tidy at all times as well as customers homes and businesses.
You must be flexible in your working hours and be available for overtime.
In return, you will be offered a competitive salary with bonuses on offer and you will be trained up to the very highest of standards to be a professional plumber and gas engineer. You will be given new uniforms and any additional tools required to do your job as well as be allocated a work van for you to attend our customers homes and businesses.
Good article! I would love to be a plumber once I leave school.
Hi Ian looking to change careers and would like to become a plumber I am 35 is it to late and what would be the best route to go cheers
Dear Sir/Madam
My name is Scott , I am a mature student at South Lanarkshire college and have recently completed City and guilds plumbing . I have an unconditional place to study Gas installation next year and I was wondering if you may be taking anyone on for placements in August. I can provide excellent references and I am reliable and hard working.
Thank you,
Scott
Hi Scott, Well done for completing your City and Guilds in plumbing. That is certainly a great first step in the very rewarding career of plumbing and heating.
Unfortunately with regards to placements and apprenticeships, we have already taken on more than we can handle. What we are really looking for is time served, exceptional plumbers and heating engineers who are fully qualified and experienced, dedicated, reliable and passionate. Not only do we need these rare breeds to continue our excellent service which we provide our customers but also to train up our apprentices in the right way of an expert plumber so that they are learning from the best.
Unfortunately, we are unable to help you at this stage but we certainly wish you all the very best in your journey to becoming a fully qualified and experienced plumber and please feel free to get in touch again in the future when you have all the qualifications you need.
Regards,
Stevie
Hello, please id like to find out how to get training as a plumber heating engineer. Im Nigerian and my country has very limited learning opportunities on this. Kinldy let me know if you can give any sort of advice.
Hi, I can’t offer any specific advice for training on how to be a plumber in Nigeria due to not knowing the training programmes, the certifications and legal requirements. However, I can tell you that starting with basic principles will stand you in good stead. Water flow in the UK is the same as water flow in Nigeria!!! Water flows downhill… Once you learn basic principles, master your tools, learn how to join pipes, taps, valves etc and become confident in mastering these basic skills, then you are over the first hurdle to becoming a plumber.
Ask local plumbers if you will be able to help them on their jobs and you will learn lots. Shadowing an expert plumber for a week, a month or a year will give you a fantastic insight into what the job entails, tricks of the trade to get jobs done right, quickly and will also give you a look into the lifestyle to see if this is really for you or not. A plumber’s life is not a glamorous one a lot of the time. It is hard physical work, often dirty, mentally taxing, frustrating and that’s just some of the highs!!!!!!
Then go to college and get certified so that you can legally practise your trade.
On the upside, it can be the best job in the world if this is truly what you want to do.
Good luck.
Wow, that’s just what I was looking for; what great information! Thanks
Hi
I noticed you said you are looking for time served plumbers. Does this mean plumbers who have gone through the traditional apprenticeship route as opposed to the fast track route?
I’m looking at becoming a plumber but would hate to do the fast track route and then be told its not really a preferd way of doing it.
Am I as qualified after doing the fast track route as an apprentice would be after doing an apprenticeship?
Thanks
Hi Phylip,
Obviously you wouldn’t have the same level of skills or experience doing a 6 month fast track course in a specific aspect of Plumbing or Heating than you would doing a 4 year apprenticeship while attaining your SVQ qualifications at College. However, if this fast track gives you an insight into the job, gives you a specific set of skills and makes you more eligible to an employer to take on and continue your training then I believe that this is still a very valuable way to get into the industry.