Building runs as deep as blood in Renee Galey’s family.

Her father, who switched from construction to building inspection, has just gone back on the tools. Her partner is a builder and her brother, a former constructor.

Renee boasts a qualification in Frame and Truss Detailing - interpreting drawings to create layout plans and cutting lists that are processed by frame and truss manufacturers. “I have grown up being around the building industry,” says the graduate of the NZ Diploma in Building Surveying (In Employment), Level 6. “So, you can imagine what the conversations are like at the dinner table.”

The 25-year-old serves as a Cadet Building Control Officer at the Buller District Council in Westport. She joins a small team of four Building Consent Authorities (BCAs) who deal with processing, inspecting and inquiries.

Renee says the diploma has given her more confidence as well as helped her gain Regulation 18 for the role. Future Skills Academy was the best option for the BCA and me for distance learning, she says. The opportunity to attend block courses in Tasman was ideal as it was only 2.5 hours away from her Westport home in the South Island. “I enjoyed being able to meet new people who were in the same boat as me,” she says. “I have made a lot of friends within my cohort.”