Winning the title of New Zealand Roofing Apprentice of the Year has boosted 26-year-old Darren Pollard's career as he comes to the end of his two-year apprenticeship.
He is completing the final stage of his four-stage apprenticeship with Watermart, where he has worked for about five years.
"I'm rapt with it. Totallyover the moon, and the company is pretty rapt too, especially my supervisor Glenn Kempthorne, who trained me and has basically been there every step of the way."
Roofing is a career that Mr Pollard naturally progressed into, after working in construction, including a stint at a film company building sets, labouring and bits of everything.
"I started the apprenticeship a couple of years ago and I love it. I love being outdoors, and the wind and cold in the winter doesn't bother me too much although it does get crazy hot in the summer," he said.
The future for Mr Pollard involves learning as much about roofing as possible with the aim of climbing the ranks to become a foreman.
"The most important thing for me right now is to get qualified, that's my short-term goal, and then I just want to get more experience in the industry and learn about different types of roofing."
