Carpenters and joiners work timber into roofs, floors, staircases, kitchens and furniture. It is one of the oldest trades and still one of the most satisfying, because you can point at what you made. It suits patient, precise people who enjoy tools and measurement. The honest parts: sites are cold in January, the work is hard on knees and shoulders, and deadlines can be tight. Skills shortages mean good carpenters choose their work, and the growing retrofit of older homes is opening a green corner of the trade.
A site day might mean pitching a roof or hanging a run of doors, working from drawings and your own marking out. A workshop day is quieter: machining, gluing, sanding and checking everything square. You end most days sweeping shavings and seeing exactly what you built.
Cutting lists, material estimates, quotes and job scheduling are all getting quicker, with AI doing the drafting. Digital measuring tools catch mistakes before the saw does. What cannot be automated is the hands on the timber, the eye for what is true and square, and the reputation that wins the next job.
There are no formal entry requirements, though GCSEs help. Most carpenters train through an apprenticeship or a college course with on-the-job training, or build up site experience with short courses.
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Retrofit / insulation installer · Site supervisor route