jobfacts

Roofer

Roofers, roof tilers and slaters — SOC 2020 5314

Roofers, roof tilers and slaters cover roofs and exterior walls with felting, sheeting, slates, tiles and thatch to provide a waterproof surface.

Also calledSlaterFlat rooferRoofing operativeRoof erectorCladderIndustrial rooferand 30 more titles
Typical full-time pay£31,9002025 Provisional
People in the job27,000across the UK
Demand for workersNot high
New adverts a month323↓ 10%on last year · 312th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025
What full-time roofers earn, 2025
£31,900 typical£25,700lowest 20%n/ptop 10%
n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less thanNot published
Lowest 20% earn less than£25,700
25%£26,400
Median£31,900
75%Not published
Top 20% earn more thanNot published
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
More than half (52%) of roofers work for themselves. These pay figures only cover employees, so they may not reflect what self-employed roofers earn.
Typical pay by regionUK median £31,900
Yorkshire and The Humber!£34,900
Scotland!£31,600
North East!£31,000
South West!£28,300
West Midlands!£27,200
North West!£26,900
East MidlandsNot published by ONS–
East of EnglandNot published by ONS–
LondonNot published by ONS–
South EastNot published by ONS–
WalesNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £31,900
Yorkshire and The Humber£34,900 (small sample)
Scotland£31,600 (small sample)
North East£31,000 (small sample)
South West£28,300 (small sample)
West Midlands£27,200 (small sample)
North West£26,900 (small sample)
East MidlandsNot published by ONS
East of EnglandNot published by ONS
LondonNot published by ONS
South EastNot published by ONS
WalesNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 2 years
  • 2024 £28,800
  • 2025 Provisional£31,900
↑ 11% since 2024Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 323 jobs for roofers are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as not high.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (1 in all)
Show as table
Aug 2026353
Jul 2026386
Jun 2026335
May 2026293
Apr 2026309
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 2026345
Jan 2026338
Dec 2025153
Nov 2025378
Oct 2025335
Sept 2025328
Aug 2025346
Jul 2025361
Jun 2025348
May 2025335
Apr 2025268
Mar 2025366
Feb 2025465
Jan 2025337
Dec 2024203
Nov 2024384
Oct 2024470
Sept 2024432
Aug 2024407
Jul 2024443
Jun 2024421
May 2024496
Apr 2024439
Mar 2024308
Feb 2024339
Jan 2024430
Dec 2023217
Nov 2023315
Oct 2023273
Sept 2023207
Aug 2023259
Jul 2023230
Jun 2023414
May 2023358
Apr 2023336
Mar 2023303
Feb 2023355
Jan 2023465
Dec 2022242
Nov 2022349
Oct 2022380
Sept 2022308
Aug 2022312
Jul 2022306
Jun 2022292
May 2022342
Apr 2022220
Mar 2022355
Feb 2022274
Jan 2022445
Dec 2021271
Nov 2021385
Oct 2021349
Sept 2021503
Aug 2021469
Jul 2021577
Jun 2021495
May 2021501
Apr 2021606
Mar 20211,253
Feb 2021568
Jan 2021669
Dec 2020304
Nov 2020430
Oct 2020523
Sept 2020376
Aug 2020352
Jul 2020282
Jun 2020202
May 2020144
Apr 2020116
Mar 2020288
Feb 2020325
Jan 2020244
Dec 2019157
Nov 2019268
Oct 2019302
Sept 2019232
Aug 2019225
Jul 2019258
Jun 2019182
May 2019196
Apr 2019120
Mar 2019168
Feb 2019181
Jan 2019204
Dec 2018120
Nov 2018184
Oct 2018195
Sept 2018218
Aug 2018148
Jul 2018151
Jun 2018173
May 2018178
Apr 2018180
Mar 2018144
Feb 2018202
Jan 2018237
Dec 2017117
Nov 2017203
Oct 2017237
Sept 2017262
Aug 2017300
Jul 2017212
Jun 2017267
May 2017220
Apr 2017256
Mar 2017300
Feb 2017245
Jan 2017186
Is there a shortage of roofers?
Not high

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment.

  • Visas grantedAbove usual
  • Online job advertsUsual
  • Wage growthAbove usual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedAbove usual
Note: uncertain in multiple indicators: change in hourly wage, hours and earnings due to proportion of self employed workers.
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
46%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for construction and building trades, which includes roofers. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London98
Manchester23
Birmingham22
Glasgow City18
West Berkshire15
Bristol, City of14
Cheshire West and Chester12
Leeds12
Nottingham12
Sheffield11
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where roofers are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. Fewer than 10 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
Age of roofers
n/p
29%!
25%!
23%!
9.6%!
n/p
!Small sample: treat with cautionn/p: too few in the survey to publish
Show as table
16–24Not published
25–3429% (small sample)
35–4425% (small sample)
45–5423% (small sample)
55–649.6% (small sample)
65+Not published
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent–
Not published
Higher education below degree!2.2%
A levels or equivalent!37%
GCSEs or equivalent!32%
Other qualifications!7.3%
No qualifications!15%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalentNot published
Higher education below degree2.2% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent37% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalent32% (small sample)
Other qualifications7.3% (small sample)
No qualifications15% (small sample)

Main employers: roofing activities (67%), construction of residential and non-residential buildings (23%).

How to get in

Most common qualification
A levels or equivalent
held by 37%
Apprenticeships
2
from level 2
Apprenticeships take
2 years
typically
Self-employed
52%
of people in the job

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

College

You can take a college course which will teach you some of the skills you'll need to get a trainee position with a roofing company.

Courses include:

  • roof slating and tiling
  • roofing occupations
  • built-up felt roofing
  • construction skills
Entry requirements

Entry requirements for these courses vary.

Apprenticeship

You can apply to do an apprenticeship with a roofing company, such as a Roofer Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship.

This can take around 2 years to complete and has options to specialise in:

  • slating and tiling
  • installing waterproof membranes
  • sheeting and cladding

If you want to work as a thatcher, you could apply for the Thatcher Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship, with a thatching company.

The National Society of Master Thatchers (NSMT) also offers an apprenticeship and mentoring scheme.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • some GCSEs, usually including English and maths, or equivalent, for an intermediate apprenticeship

Other ways in

Work your way up

You can start work as a roofing labourer or roofer's 'mate' and take further training while you work to get your roofing qualifications.

In thatching, you can apply to thatching companies to be taken on as a trainee. Employers will want to see enthusiasm for the craft and good practical skills.

Apply directly

You can apply directly for roofing jobs. You'll need some GCSEs and relevant practical experience, for example gained from working in other areas of construction.

What you’ll need

  • be able to cope with working at height

You may need a driving licence for some jobs.

Registration and professional bodies

Registration
  • you'll need a Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) card or equivalent to train and work on a construction site
Career tips

Roofers are required in all areas of the country. If you're looking for a career in thatching, you may need to relocate to an area where thatching skills are in demand.

Further information

You can find out more about how to become a roofer from Go Construct and House Building Careers.

You can learn more about a career in thatching from the National Society of Master Thatchers.

Routes in are from the National Careers Service job profile for roofer. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Apprenticeships

2 for this job

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • measures roof or exterior wall and calculates required amounts of underfelt, tiles, slates or thatching material
  • cuts wooden battens, felt and underfelt to required size
  • lays and secures underfelt and covers with hot bitumen or other adhesive compound
  • lays, aligns and secures successive overlapping layers of roofing material
  • seals edges of roof with mortar and ensures that joints are watertight

Skills

  • apply roll roofing
  • construct wood roofs
  • follow health and safety procedures in construction
  • follow safety procedures when working at heights
  • inspect construction supplies
  • inspect roofs
  • install gutters
  • install insulation material
  • install roof flashing
  • interpret 2D plans
  • interpret 3D plans
  • lay interlocking roof tiles
  • perform roof maintenance
  • prepare roofing materials

Knowledge

  • roofing techniques
  • asbestos removal regulations
  • building codes
  • crane load charts
  • energy efficiency
  • energy performance of buildings

Suits people who like

  • Practical, hands-on work
  • Organising and following procedures

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for skilled construction and building trades, a group of 12 jobs that includes roofers.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↓ 1.5%about 14,000 fewer jobs
Workers needed by 2035374,000including people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

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