Entry Requirements

There are no specific academic requirements to train as stonemason, although an interest in art and design and GCSE passes (A-D) / S Grades (1-4) in Maths, English and Technology may be helpful for calculations, measurements and theory. Employers usually look for team-working skills, an ability to understand and follow instructions and a willingness to work both indoors and outdoors.

Prospective stonemasons can expect to learn the trade through an apprenticeship or traineeship, lasting 3 to 4 years. There is a highly accredited City & Guilds stonemasonry course available at several colleges, which combines on-site practical skills and college-based theoretical training.

The Benefits

The Building and Allied Trades Joint Industrial Council agrees wage rates annually. Pay rates for apprentices in Scotland are set by the Scottish Building Apprenticeship & Training Council .  Wages are often boosted by incentive schemes offered by many companies. Having the ability to carve stone and create decorative features offers the possibility to earn additional money and to travel in the UK and elsewhere in the world to work on different projects and learn additional skills from other stonemasons.

Many stonemasons are rewarded by their physically creating long-lasting new buildings or contributing to the repair and maintenance of older buildings, while others may carve beautiful and engaging art works on a freelance basis. Often, stonemasons progress to master crafts status and become supervisors and managers. Some set up their own companies.

The Job  

Stonemasonry has existed for thousands of years, and today it's a traditional skill that's still very much in demand - it can be a really rewarding career, and you could get to work on some extremely impressive projects.

A banker mason is usually based off-site in a workshop shaping different components from sawn blocks of stone, using templates and drawings as a guide to replace stones from a building by replicating the shape and form of the original. Intricate carved details and decorative features require the skills of a stone carver.

A fixer mason installs the stone components produced by the banker masons to replace decayed elements on a building of historic or architectural importance using traditional lime mortars and need an understanding of the structural aspects of load-bearing elements, such as arches and lintels.

The People  

You'll need to be both creative and practical and enjoy physical work indoors or outside. An interest in history helps, but this is not essential.

Find out the challenges of the job and how to be creative with the different types of stonemasonry from Gareth Burns, Michael Goulding and Stephen Wooley.