Last months reports by the National Heritage Training Group (NHTG) suggest these historical buildings are at risk of decay and ruin as there are serious skill and knowledge gaps affecting specialist workers and building professionals working in the built heritage sector.
In a bid to save the five million pre-1919 buildings throughout England, the NHTG and its partners, consisting of heritage bodies, contractors, trade federations and trade unions among others, announced it will be investing £1m to help reduce the skills gap.
Expanding the number of National Heritage Training Group.
Despite an increase of nearly 20,000 people entering the sector since 2005 raising the intake to 109,000 people, it is estimated only 22,000 craftspeople undertake work with traditional materials on pre-1919 buildings.
In addition, of the half a million professionals working in the UK, including architects, engineers, surveyors and conservation officers, only 507 are building conservation-accredited meaning there is just one accredited surveyor for every 85,000 traditional buildings.
The report shows new recruits may be ill-equipped to replace experienced professionals exiting the sector.
To improve on this, training and skills development will also be provided to support regional heritage skills action groups and a mentoring programme with experienced craftspeople passing on skills to less experienced practitioners are planned.
Rachel Bower, the education officer at the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) in London, said: "The NHTG's plans to reduce skills shortages, improving training at every level and making us better informed about appropriate skills for historic building work are really very ambitious.
"Properly funded they could make a real difference."
Paddy Pugh, the regional director of Conservation of English Heritage in London concurs. He said: "These skills issues affect not just the listed buildings, but the whole swathe of undesignated and locally important heritage and conservation areas which form an integral part of the historic environment."
Lucy Haugh, a graduate stonemason from Nottinghill recognises the importance of receiving the right training, not only for a successful career, but also for preserving the country's heritage.
She has recently won a competition to design and create a £30,000 sculpture for a flagship affordable housing development scheme in Stratford and is a shining example of how the £1m investment is improving skills and training.
Lucy, who made the bold decision to leave her job running a PR consultancy in London to peruse a more satisfying career in the construction industry, enrolled at the Buildings Art College in Stratford and has completed a diploma and NVQ Level three in stonemasonry.
She said: "I feel confident I am a craftsperson with a lifetime career ahead of me.
"I undertake a variety of work and my technical abilities are definitely expanding."
Currently self employed, Lucy has ambitions of opening her own workshop. She said: "I am hoping to set up a workshop eventually and be lettering full time but when the time comes for me to hang up my gloves and boots, I hope to see the path to a satisfying career like mine made much more accessible to people coming into the industry, and look forward to passing on my skills, which have built so much of the landscape in which I have grown up in London."
For those pre-1919 buildings which may have been at risk from a lack of a skilled workforce can rest assured in the knowledge they'll be standing for a long time to come with the help of the £1m investment.
For more information about the NHTG, click here
12:12pm Monday 12th May 2008
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