Female renovators take the reins
- 11 Oct 2022

The Block’s resident ‘Tradie Lady’ and James Hardie enthusiast, Jenny Heath, says it’s time to forget gender stereotypes…and get on the tools.
Ladies, it’s time to get on the tools. That’s the message Block contestant and apprentice carpenter Jenny Heath has for women and girls who may have thought about giving a trade a go.
She says it’s time to take the plunge and sign up for an apprenticeship.
“My advice to young girls wanting to sign up to a trade would be: don’t be afraid to get involved and give anything a go!” she tells The Block Shop. “Because I truly believe that girls have the ability to become quality trades people.”
The Block 2022's Jenny Heath from House 4 says to young girls wanting to start a trade, don’t be afraid to get involved and give anything a go!
Jenny, 25, is based in Queensland and is two years through her four-year Carpentry apprenticeship, which she started after her and husband-to-be Dylan Adams, 28 — whom she’s paired with on The Block in House 4 — began working on their own home in Palm Beach, Queensland.
It was a huge career leap — prior to her apprenticeship she’d worked in childcare, as a dental assistant and as a ski instructor.
Not a lot of nail guns in those professions!
“I decided to become a chippy when Dylan and I bought our first home on the Gold Coast, to renovate and sell,” she explains. “I thought, ‘Why not learn off Dylan, who’s a builder, and save ourselves money?’”
“We’ve actually worked with Hardie™ cladding products before — most recently we cladded our entire house on the Gold Coast in Linea™ Weatherboards by James Hardie,” she explains. Photo credit@Instagram.
Jenny fully immersed herself into the reno project, getting on the tools and jumping in to provide hands-on assistance to her builder hubby, who has guided her through the apprenticeship process.
She was on hand to help clad the couple’s home on the Gold Coast, which meant she was already familiar with Hardie™ exterior products when it came time to clad the exterior of House 4 on The Block — a huge advantage.
“We’ve actually worked with Hardie™ cladding products before — most recently we cladded our entire house on the Gold Coast in Linea™ Weatherboards by James Hardie,” she explains.
Her prior experience meant she not only knew the impact a beautiful exterior can have on a home’s overall appeal, but also was familiar with Linea Weatherboards in particular, which they used on The Block for the exterior of their country weatherboard cottage.
The couple also used Hardie™ Fine Texture Cladding and Axent™ Trim products for their modern extension — a combination of materials that provided a lovely new take on a traditional “Board and Batten” look. Using the textured cladding panels on the modern exterior complemented the themes already playing out in their interior. And again, they were already familiar with them from previous building projects.
Jenny and Dylan really are showing that hard work pays off this season, they have been praised for their perfect execution by the judges repeatedly.
“And it turns out I love being on the tools and learning something new every day,” says Jenny of her time apprenticing up in QLD.
And she’s not the only one.
According to the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), towards the end of last year record numbers of Queensland women took on trade apprenticeships in the state. Data released for the September quarter in 2021 showed that of the 79,295 apprentices and trainees, 28.9 percent of those were women.
Dan and Keith have complimented Jenny on her work-ethic and skills, and her ‘can-do’ attitude hasn’t gone unnoticed with fans either. Jenny pictured onsite at The Block Treechange 2022, with Scott Cam, Frankie and Fiancé Dylan. Pic credit @David Cook Photography.
Jenny’s skills have certainly come in handy on this year’s Block.
She’s been able to roll up her sleeves and work alongside the other tradies on their site, who’ve all been incredibly supportive.
Dan and Keith have also complimented Jenny on her work-ethic and skills, and her ‘can-do’ attitude hasn’t gone unnoticed with fans.
“I’ve had lots of positive messages (from women) saying I’ve inspired them to start a trade, and I love that,” she says.
Jenny's had messages (from women) saying I’ve inspired them to start a trade, and I love that,” she says.
Over the past few years more and more women have been signing on for apprenticeships and deciding to get on the tools for their own renovation projects.
But it doesn’t have to be as complicated as doing a four-year course. There are plenty of websites and social media accounts out there, run by women and for women, which offer plenty of advice and make it their mission to arm women with the right tools to be able to knowledgeably and accurately talk with their builders and trades.
“Even when they’re not building or renovating alone, women are increasingly taking the lead on these projects,” says Cathleya Buchanan, APAC Marketing Director at James Hardie.
You might not have the time or inclination to do an apprenticeship, but that doesn't mean you can’t educate yourself, and that’s where sites like Three Birds Renovations, The Reno School, BuildHer Collective and Renovating Mums come in handy.
They provide supportive spaces; there to dish out plenty of practical know-how — many also offer short online courses to further expand your knowledge base.
More and more women like Jenny are choosing to educate themselves, their knowledge and new-found-skills empowering them to know they’re making the right decision for their projects.
Furthermore, Jenny and Dylan's trade knowledge means they have a good understanding of just how important durability and maintenance of a product is when using materials. They knew that their Hardie™ products were manufactured in Australia and designed specifically for our harsh and unpredictable climate; that they were made with fibre cement that doesn’t warp or rot and is resilient to fire and moisture — a game changer both at home in QLD and on The Block.
Jenny says she’s pleased that her new-found knowledge helped her to have the confidence to weigh in on all their building decisions, knowing she’s making the right choices for all her projects.
With two more years to go on her apprenticeship, and a baptism by fire via The Block, the only way is up for ‘Tradie Lady’ Jenny from the Block, and she’s excited that more women may feel empowered to follow in her footsteps and give it a red-hot crack.
“At first, it might be tough,” she says of taking that career leap. “But if you have the right person showing you the way, anything is possible.”
If you love seeing what Jenny and Dylan have been up to at The Block 2022, keep up with all of their room reveals here.