Not sure what to expect? You’re in the right place. This page is here to help you put your best foot forward at every stage of Apprentice of the Year.
From submitting your entry and tackling the practical challenge to interviews and site visits, you’ll find tips, guidance, and resources to help you prepare, stay confident, and show the judges what you can do.
This is where you lock in your entry. You’ll complete an online entry form and upload your project submission. You can log in as many times as you like until entries close - just remember to click Update after any changes, and look for the green tick showing sections are complete.
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Personal information |
Who you are and where you’re from, and your contact details so we can get in touch. |
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Employer information |
Company name, details, and contact person for your employer. This is who will receive the request to complete your employer reference. |
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Apprenticeship information |
Your training provider, start date of your apprenticeship, and contact details for your training advisor. You can also include details of any other building qualifications you may have. |
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Why you? |
Tell us your story, and why you should be the next Apprentice of the Year. You’ll need to talk about:
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Project Details |
This is where you upload details of a project that you are currently working on or have completed while you were training. Try to make it a project that the judges can view for your site visit should you progress to Stage 2 of the competition. You should talk about:
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Employer Reference Training Advisor Reference |
Requests for these will be sent automatically, using the contact details you have already entered. These references are required for your entry to be accepted, so give your employer and training advisor a heads up, and make sure they complete them promptly. |
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Site Visit Address (if known) |
If you progress to Stage 2 of the competition you will receive a site visit from the judges. Ideally it will be the project you submitted in your written application - although this is not compulsory. |
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Upload your photo |
Provide a head and shoulders photo of yourself to be used at the Regional Awards presentation.
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The Regional Practical Challenge is a two-hour, hands-on build challenge held at a CARTERS store in your region. This is where you showcase your real-world skills - reading the plan, planning your build, working safely, and delivering a clean finish. Judges assess your work based on safety, planning, accuracy, and overall quality.
We can’t tell you what you’ll build on the day, but these examples show the type and scale of recent challenges:
| 08:00am | Arrival at local CARTERS, coffee and get ready for the challenge |
| 08:45am | Get ready to find out what you're going to be building |
| 09:00am | National Timers start across the country at the same time |
| 11:00am | TIME'S UP and TOOLS DOWN |
| 11:30am | Final Pack up - all hands on deck |
| 12:00pm | Presentation for Apprentices and event wrap up |
Results from the Regional Practical are accumulated by your Branch Administrator and scores are added to over all scored to determine the regional Top 10 moving onto the next stage.
If you make the Top 10 for your region, you’ll be interviewed and host judges on a site visit.This is about how you communicate, how you think, and how you show professionalism on site. The judging panel is made up of representatives from: Master Builders BCITO CARTERS
Be ready to explain why you entered, what you want to gain, what work you’ve been involved in, and how you handle safety, planning, and working with others.
Your overall regional result is based on four parts to recognise apprentices who are strong on the tools and can also communicate and act professionally. Judges are looking for competence, clarity, and real on-site understanding.
Written application + project submission - 20%
Professionalism/presentation, project submission quality, detail & comprehension, and your “Why you?” story.
Practical challenge - 35%
Health & Safety, planning, building to plans, completeness, and standard of finish.
Site visit - 20%
Construction/presentation, quality of work, your hand tool kit, on-site attitude, Health & Safety, and teamwork/reliability.
Interview - 25%
Personal + communication, how you explain your project, and industry knowledge (best practice, safety, materials, compliance).
Keep an eye on what's coming up and make sure you're ready for the next challenge.
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