Supporting the stonemasons of the future

Welcoming visitors to our site, cosily located in our office, sit two prominent stonemasonry pieces: Joey and Percy. In our very own Bath Stone Base Bed, two students from Bath College’s stonemasonry department created these distinctive carvings.

We are delighted to regularly donate supplies of Bath Stone to the college for students to practice and develop their skills so that we nurture our stonemasons of the future. Our donations are particularly valuable for stonemasonry students because of the Bath Stone Base Bed’s distinctive features, including its unusual depth.

A career in stonemasonry

There are few careers where you learn the skills to take you to some of the most incredible sites in Britain. Trained and skilled stonemasons are in high demand and get to work on some of the country’s most iconic and captivating buildings, such as castles and cathedrals.

Bath College is just one of two colleges in the UK offering stonemasonry qualifications. These are provided alongside apprenticeships, ensuring students develop real-world skills and can develop exciting careers.

Stonemasonry at Bath College

Stonemason students at Bath College benefit from the fantastic facilities in the purpose-built state-of-the-art masonry workshop, which is part of the Construction Skills Centre at the Somer Valley campus in Radstock which opened in 2017. Ofsted inspectors have noted the “high-quality, industry-standard facilities.” At the Bath Stone Company, we’re proud to provide a critical part of the materials students need. Onsite, students benefit from working on our stone in the workshop banker environments and the outdoor site simulation areas.

There are many diverse specialisms within stonemasonry. These are now supported by a Trailblazer Apprenticeship that covers various mandatory elements, such as health and safety and understanding technical information, before students specialise in areas such as ‘Banker’, ‘Exterior Mason’, ‘Interior Mason’ or ‘Heritage Mason’.

The Introduction to Stonemasonry Level 1 course lays the foundations for those wishing to work in stonemasonry, conservation, restoration and construction. Following this, student stonemasons can choose options such as Level 2 and 3 Banker or Exterior Fixer. All courses train students to install new stone and conserve, repair and replace existing natural stone. Banker masons typically work in a workshop, preparing the stone for installation, such as by making moulds and templates. Exterior Fixer masons typically work onsite to prepare backgrounds, ready for the stone from the workshop, and install and repair stone onsite.

None of these courses, and ultimately the high-level skills of our future stonemasons, would be possible without high-quality stone to hone their skills on.

Could you be a stonemason of the future?

There are few trades as fascinating as stonemasonry, which will take you on a rewarding career journey which may include working on some of the country’s most-beloved architecture. Studying to be a stonemason at Bath College means learning from the best, with the best equipment and stone. It’s the place to learn if you want to become a qualified stonemason.

If you’re unsure and want to learn more about whether stonemasonry is for you, Bath College also offers a short Introduction to Stonemasonry course that will give you some hands-on experience on our Bath Stone.

We’re proud to donate Bath Stone for our stonemasons of the future.