Alderly Edge joiner wins Screwfix Britain's Top Tradesman competition

A joiner has beat off competition from thousands of hopefuls to be voted Britain's best tradesman.

Tom Ball, 29, landed a new £27,000 Toyota Van and the title of Screwfix Britain’s Top Tradesman 2013 after displaying an unbridled passion for his profession.

Tom, of Crescent Road, Alderley Edge, beat 3,000 other entrants to be named top tradesman at a ceremony at Wembley Stadium in London.

He said: “I was on a job with a customer when they called to tell me so I told them to call back in half an hour.

“I ended up finishing with the customer in about five minutes though so it was a tense wait parked up in my van till they rang back.

“After they told me the news I tried to call friends and family but no one would answer. Instead I had a party in my van on my own.”

The workaholic, who lives with girlfriend Leanne Maw, has been running his company T Ball Joinery since moving to the area three years ago.

And he says he thinks it's his commitment to going the extra mile for his clients that made him stand out to the judges.

Tom said: “I always try my best to go above and beyond. I was due to do some work at this guys house when I heard he’d been in an accident.”

“He had quite a serious brain injury and couldn’t drive unassisted so I picked him up from hospital and took him on the 45 minute journey back to his house and did the work.”

Another time Tom made some dummy units for a woman who wasn't sure she would be happy with changing her interior.

Tom said: “I didn't even have the job at that point, she just wanted to get a feel for how her room would change. I'm always happy to help.”

But Tom considers himself lucky after only handing in his entry form for the competition at the last minute.

He said: “Me and my girlfriend were having a lazy Sunday and it was the last day to hand in the form. She told me just to go for it so we drove to Stockport to hand it in. “She persuaded me to go and do it and I'm over the moon she did.”

Source : Alex Hibbert - Macclesfield Express
www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/alderley-edge-joiner-beats-thousands-6309758