Jonathan Blackwell

Jonathan began his apprenticeship in 1985 with a Warwickshire based master thatcher and then carried on to work with various companies as a journeyman before setting up Parkinson Blackwell with Ian in 1992.

Having at the age of eighteen trained and worked as a chef along side Gordon Ramsey at The North Oxford Technical Collage I Decided that I wanted to return to my rural roots and thatching became my passion. A thatching career is hard manual work in all weathers but we manage to have laughs, get the job done and win awards.

Ian Parkinson

Ian Served his apprenticeship with the same Warwickshire based company in 1982 and again worked as a journeyman refining his skills to gain a broader range of thatching knowledge before setting up Parkinson Blackwell in 1992.

Ian had an idea what sort of work he wanted to do and the sort of environment in which to do it and has perused a thatching career that was to become his passion. We have been members of the national council master thatchers association since the end of our apprenticeships and play an active roll within the association.Ian has been the secretary of The Oxon, Berks and Bucks association for over twelve years.

Adam Kirsop

Adam joined Parkinson Blackwell in 2002 where he served a full four year apprenticeship to become a true Master Thatcher. Adam has been a family friend to Ian since he was a young boy in Deddington. Adam is now a valued highly skilled integral part of the team.

Tom O’Gorman

Tom is Parkinson Blackwell’s only apprentice; Tom has two passions; rugby where he played for London Wasps colts and his passion for thatching, a boyhood dream. Tom is in his third year of an apprenticeship and already has the skills of a Master Thatcher.

Toms Blog: The apprentice Please ask for a free copy of this DVD

Big Tom and Will

Tom and Will trained to thatch in the West Country with a highly regarded West Country thatcher. They joined our team in 2004. They are the most genuine and polite people you could meet and there part within our company has secured our first place in winning the Master Thatcher’s Association Award a record five times. They are among the most skilled thatcher’s in the United Kingdom.

Please feel free to call to discuses any aspect of your thatched property.