engineering
Soldier
Regular

Plasterer and Painter

Train in painting and plastering. Then work on the Army’s biggest building projects, all round the world. Get a trade, qualifications and an exciting lifestyle.

Starting salary
£26,334
Age range
16.6 to 35.6

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Role details

Entry Requirements

Age

To apply for this position, you must be between 16 years & 6 months old and 35 years & 6 months old at the time of your application.

Fitness

Mid Thigh Pull 50kg
Medicine Ball Throw 3m
2km run 11 min

More information about the fitness test

Education

GCSE Grade A–D/9-3, or Scottish National 4, in at least English Language, Maths and one other subject.

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About the Role

Painting, plastering, tiling; you’re the person who adds the finishing touches to Army building projects. You could be working on hospitals, headquarters, military plants or bases, anywhere in the world. Whatever the building, you’ll get it ready for use. First-class training teaches you about plaster boarding, scaffolding, glazing and more – skills you can use in the civilian world. Meanwhile, you can boost your CV by taking all kinds of qualifications to improve your Maths and English, for example. When you’re not working, you can have plenty of fun with good mates doing sports and Adventurous Training.
Plasterer and Painter is a Trade role in the Royal Engineers. All the Royal Engineer soldier job roles are divided into 5 groups. When you apply to the Engineers, you will apply to the trade group rather than the specific trade. .

Key Responsibilities

Learn a host of trades including plaster boarding, painting, and tiling
Become expert in associated skills like glazing and scaffolding
Deploy on operations all over the world
Carry out work on a variety of military and civilian projects
Experience Army sports and adventurous training

Training

Step 1
Your initial military training teaches you how to be a soldier, covering everything from fieldcraft to how to handle a rifle.

If you join as a Junior Soldier (under 17 years and 6 months), you’ll do a basic military training course at Harrogate.
If you join as a Regular Soldier (over 17 years and 6 months), you’ll do the regular adult basic training.

Step 2
Then it’s off to the Royal School of Military Engineering near Camberley for 12 weeks. Here, you learn military engineering skills such as knots and lashings, demolition, mine warfare and bridge building. Then it’s 24 weeks at the Royal School of Military Engineering in Chatham, learning about dry lining, painting, wall and floor tiling, planning and site safety.