| A SHORTAGE of skilled craftspeople in the heritage sector is placing many of Britain’s historic churches and cathedrals at risk, a report released this week by the National Heritage Training Group (NHTG) says.
Although the situation has improved since a similar report came out in 2005, there is still said to be a lack of skilled professionals such as stonemasons and thatchers.
The research showed that of 109,000 people employed on pre-1919 buildings in 2007, just 33,000 had the expertise to work with traditional building materials.
Paul Atkin, team leader of the masonry department at Lincoln Cathedral, agrees that there is a shortage of skilled stonemasons, and feels that the current stonemasonry course taught in further-education colleges is not wide-ranging enough.
“At the moment, the NVQ in stonemasonry is not long enough or producing the goods, which means we are getting people coming into the trade who know the basics but don’t have the skills up to the standard that cathedrals and churches would expect.”
In an attempt to improve the situation, Lincoln joined forces with seven other cathedrals, Worcester, York, Durham, Canterbury, Gloucester, Winchester, Salisbury, and with Westminster Abbey, to create the Cathedrals Workshop Fellowship, which organises annual seminars on stonemasonry and arranges exchanges between apprentices.
John David, master stonemason at York Minster, said a recent recruitment drive for skilled craftspeople to work on the Minster’s East-window refurbishment project, highlighted the dearth of skilled workers.
“We have taken on someone from America and a number of people from Europe. In the commercial world, machines are used to reduce costs, but we are doing very intricate work that requires work by hand; otherwise it doesn’t look right.”
Stephen Bowler, deputy head of the Cathedral and Church Buildings Division, which is part of the Archbishops’ Council, said that they had been interviewed by the NHTG as part of the research.
The conservation industry is a huge market, he says, worth about £185 million a year among Church of England parishes alone. “One problem is that there is not enough awareness of how much money there is in old buildings. We’re working with the Ecclesiastical Architects and Surveyors Association about how we can bring in new blood and train up architects who have a church conservation background.
“We’re also working with the Institute of Conservation, and encouraging a system where people can seek accredited craftspeople.”
The report was based on interviews with contractors, training providers, trade associations in the construction industry, and stakeholders in the heritage sector.
The report calls for a drive to increase the intake of people on traditional training courses in further education colleges, and incentives to encourage employers to take on new apprentices. |
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