What do you enjoy about your career?

I am my own boss. I work for whom I wish and do the work I want to do. I am out in the open air everyday in all conditions. I meet the most interesting type of people. I see a variety of wild life and experiencethe change in seasons. I do not have to rush anywhere and as a result I observe an awful lot from the changing colours of light through the hedge to minute insects.

What do you need to know/do to become a professional and qualified waller?

Join the Hedgelaying Association and find out where the local Hedgelaying Association operates from and undertake a week-long course. Get as much practice as possible, landowners will be only too pleased to have their hedges laid – they may even pay you! The possession of a chain saw certificate is not essential but helps with the more difficult hedges and you ARE trained how to PROPERLY use a chainsaw. There is no official certification scheme at present in Hedgelaying but there is a training organisation called 'The West Berkshire and Oxon Training Group' whereby you can attend a course after which, and on completion of a test, you will either be awarded an intermediate, advanced or master Cutters Certificate.

What makes you successful at what you do?

I am an enthusiast about anything that uses natural resources which compliments the local environment and enhances it. I enjoy working with my hands but this does not mean your brain is idle. The true crafts person have to undergo a five year apprenticeship before qualifying in a craft. Knowing how to approach each tree stem in a hedge demands a high level of concentration, and knowledge of the material in the way it will behave to achieve the required result. I am also very willing to learn by reading up on methods or talking to other craft persons, exchanging tips and ideas. This is the benefit you get from belonging to an association.

What advice or useful tips would you give to young people interested in becoming a waller?

Take a week long course with your local Hedgelaying Association, a course will cost you approximately £20 per day. Also enter competitions in the 'youth section' and learn from the professional members, who will judge your length of hedge. Never be frightened of constructive criticism and ask questions – lots of questions. If you choose to specialise in hedge laying you will need to have another skill / craft to tide you over the six months when you cannot lay hedges (hedge laying is seasonal, from September to the end of March).