Our Story

In 1980 I left school and went as a full-time student at Ashington Technical Cottage for 3 years studying my City & Guilds in Carpentry & Joinery and ONC in Building Construction. In my final year, I completed my Advance Craft in Carpentry and Joinery in 1983. Once I left college I worked for a local family-run Builders Merchant as a Wood Machinist for 4 years and so glad to say I still have all my fingers.

In 1987 then got a job working for a family run Building Development firm as a buyer cost clerk and also went to Newcastle Cottage where I completed my HNC in Building Construction and got an internal promotion as a role of Bonus Surveyor, which involved me evaluating the tradesman work and agreeing site bonus and making payments around 75 personnel on a fortnightly basis. Unfortunately, the family-run business after 120 years went into liquidation. A few months later I was fortunate to get a job role as a Clerk of Works for the Local Authority and then became a building surveyor working on the planned maintenance refurbishment programme on the varied housing stock in the Tyne Valley in Northumberland for 11.5 years, till I so a job advert for a building surveyor at the National Trust. For me, this was a dream job that does come up very often. I jump at the chance quickly and submitted my CV. To my surprise, I got an interview at the age of 38 and started work in July 2003.

My role as an operations surveyor was looking after an allocated portfolio of historic buildings from a Castle, Lighthouse, Mansions, and Holiday Cottages plus properties along Hadrian’s Wall and in the Yorkshire Dales along with Fountains Abbey a World Heritage site, this work was very interesting and challenging which covered reactive repairs, planned cyclical works, compliance tasks, external re-decoration as some refurbishment projects. I also had a supportive role in some renewable energy projects (biomass, LED lights in historic buildings). This was until Covid 19 hit and my world changed then told I was furloughed for 9 months, and with that came an internal re-structure review within the organization, the fall out of this was I was made redundant after almost 18 years of looking after historic buildings that people loved back in December 2020. For me, I will always have footsteps across my heart with lasting memories of the restoration work I achieved in that period of time.

In 2016 got a Bachelor’s Degree in Conservation Project Management which then helped me towards gaining full membership in the Chartered Institute of Building (MCIOB) in April 2019 as a chartered Construction manager.

I am married to Julie for the past 22 years and have 3 children, 2 boys and a daughter. Daniel the oldest is a mechanical engineer, Jake just completed a university postgraduate in civil engineering and Tammzin is in her second year at Teesside University studying to be a Paramedic I Am so proud of them all and seeing their journey pathway just beginning.

My interests are enjoying the great outdoors walking and camping, eating out with family & friends, watching wildlife and of course holidays both in this country and abroad.