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    Media release

    TAFE NSW Wagga Wagga | 19 November 2025

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    Angel makes career move from story time to spanners

    “It’s a very different job to aged care and childcare but I just love being a plumber and I hope I can inspire other young women to consider it”

    Angel Bielefeld, TAFE NSW student

    A Wagga woman has made an unlikely career pivot from childcare to plumbing to help secure her financial future. She has urged other local females to consider a rewarding career in the trades.

    Angel Bielefeld, 22, felt stifled by the school learning environment and left early to work in aged care, before switching to childcare for two years.

    Struggling to make ends meet and eager to pursue a practical trade career, she had a three-day work experience stint with a plumber and fell in love with the profession.

    Now a second year apprentice with Plumbing Bros, the Glenfield Park woman attends TAFE NSW Wagga Wagga one day a week during term to hone her skills and knowledge.

    Angel Bielefeld stands in a partially constructed bathroom. She is wearing a black t-shirt, clear glasses and smiles at the camera.

    Plumbing contributes 9 per cent to Australia’s GDP and supports thousands of trade jobs in Australia. A growing skills shortage is increasing wages and job security for qualified plumbers, according to Master Plumbers Australia, who say attracting more women to the trade is critical to closing the skills gap. 

    Only about 1 per cent of the nation’s plumbers are female.

    “It’s a very different job to aged care and childcare but I just love being a plumber and I hope I can inspire other young women to consider it,” Ms Bielefeld said. “To do a day’s work and be able to see what your effort has produced at the end of the day is very rewarding.” Despite the sometimes grimy nature of the job and the fact it was male-dominated, Ms Bielefeld said she hadn’t encountered any issues.

    “The boys treat me as they would any other workmate and the clients have been great; in fact, a lot of female clients actually request me because they find me easier to talk to,” Ms Bielefeld said. “And I think females can bring a new dimension to the trade in terms of attention to detail and leaving the work site clean.”

    Ms Bielefeld said TAFE NSW had helped her develop as a tradeswoman on a number of fronts.

    “It’s great to tap into the experience of the teachers and learn new things, especially around the standards we have to adhere to,” she said. “It’s also great to train alongside other apprentices as you can pick up better ways to do things.” She said she would eventually like to open her own plumbing business – staffed entirely by females.

    TAFE NSW Wagga Wagga plumbing teacher Travis Warton said plumbing offered a valuable career path for anyone, regardless of gender. “We encourage people of all genders and ages to give a plumbing career a go. This is a career that provides a positive future, with huge demand both in the metropolitan areas and regionally,” he said.

    “Angel’s story is a great example of how TAFE NSW provides the skills our students need to flourish in their jobs. She is a real asset to her employer and a great role model for our other female apprentices, as well as other women thinking about this career.”

    Media contact: Dan Johns, TAFE NSW Communications Specialist, 02 7920 5000.

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