Traditional Building Skills and Building Conservation Courses and

Traditional Building Skills and
Building Conservation Courses
and Lectures
April 2015 – March 2016
repair*
background*
Since 1997 the Historic Buildings and Conservation team at Essex
County Council has run a series of one, two or three day hands-on
courses in traditional building skills. We are the only council in the
country to run this type of educational programme. The courses aim
to raise awareness of the importance of protecting our historic buildings
by using the appropriate methods and materials to repair and conserve
them.
Many of the courses are run from our workshop at Cressing Temple
Barns but, where possible, we use sites throughout the county which
enable our students to work on live projects. Our tutors are all excellent
craftsmen who run their own businesses using their skills every day,
and who have a wealth of experience and knowledge.
Those attending the courses include owners of historic buildings,
practising craftsmen who want to specialise in traditional repairs,
and general builders and contractors as well as interested amateurs.
Courses are open to all skill levels unless specified otherwise.
Running alongside the hands-on courses is a range of CPD lecture
sessions recognised by the Institute of Historic Building Conservation
(IHBC). Topics vary annually but their aim remains the same, to
educate and inform professionals such as surveyors, architects,
building contractors, self-employed tradesmen, plus the owners of
historic buildings, in the technical and practical issues involved in the
care and repair of our historic buildings.
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bursary scheme
City & Country is delighted to be able to support, again this year, this
bursary scheme which helps address a lack of traditional building
skills in the construction industry. By funding the bursary scheme
and offering free places on a Traditional Building Skills courses, City
& Country is proud to be playing an important role in expanding the
knowledge and skills of craftsmen.
City & Country is the market leading heritage developer in the South.
From stylish apartments and duplexes to traditional mews houses,
they offer an inspiring selection of homes. They have a reputation for
creating outstanding developments and their schemes consistently win
prestigious awards for design quality and exceptional craftsmanship.
Most recently winning House Builder of the Year, Gold for Best
Medium Housebuilder and Gold in the Best Renovation category at the
esteemed WhatHouse? Awards.
Current developments include: The Galleries, the former 19th Century
Warley Hospital in Brentwood, Essex. Bentley Priory in Stanmore, the
17th Century Mansion House which housed Fighter Command during
The Battle of Britain. The Garden Quarter in Bicester, Oxfordshire,
which now occupies the former RAF Bicester buildings and grounds.
Most recently City & Country has launched The General, the Grade
II Listed, former Bristol General Hospital located on the waterfront
and King Edward VII Estate which represents some of the finest
Arts and Crafts architecture and landscaping in the country. With
exciting upcoming projects upcoming in Bromley, Edinburgh, Bristol
and Hampshire. The importance of tradesman with the skills and
knowledge to revive these treasured buildings has never been so
great. Read more at www.cityandcountry.co.uk
The bursary scheme provides a unique opportunity for those already
working in the industry to gain experience and understanding of craft
building techniques relevant to historic buildings. This scheme covers
the implicated costs of the course. It will be particularly suitable for
independent builders or small contractors who are passionate about
period buildings and restoration.
To find out more about eligibility and applying for funding please
contact Katie Seabright.
Call 03330 136560 or Email traditional.buildingskills@essex.gov.uk
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hands on courses*
Lime Plaster for Plasterers
23 – 24 April 2015, Little Clacton
Tutor: Roy Cafferty, Traditional Lime Plastering
This two-day hands-on course is aimed at working plasterers interested
in broadening their experience, and amateurs with some plastering skills.
The course will give students the opportunity to work on a listed building
and will explain how to fix laths, prepare lime putty mixes, and plaster on
to laths as well as highlighting the importance of good preparation and
aftercare. Roy runs his own plastering business and has been in the trade
for forty years. He works in all aspects of lime plaster but specialises in
fine plaster finishes. He is one of the few lime plasterers who still runs
mouldings in situ.
Fee £215
An Introduction to Rustic Fencing
22 May 2015, Cressing Temple Barns
Tutor: Steven Westover – Westover Woodlands
Traditional locally made fencing may be more appropriate in the setting
of a historic building or in a Conservation Area, more sustainable and
more attractive than modern styles and materials, and cheaper and more
satisfying if home made. The aim of this one-day course is to introduce
participants to different styles of traditional natural wood fencing, including
both theory and hands-on experience in the use of the tools and the
choice and processing of materials.Students will be able to take home
their finish panel.
Fee £150
An Introduction to Wattle & Daub
11 – 12 June 2015, Great Saling
This two-day course shows how to use traditional materials for infill panels
in timber-framed buildings. It will include a look at the history of its use,
mixing and practical application. The course is intended for people who
want to broaden their experience into the area of conservation and repair.
No experience needed.
Fee £215
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Repair and Conservation of Flint Walling
24 – 26 June 2015, St Botolph’s Church, Hadstock
Tutor: Simon Williams, Anglian Flint
Students on this three-day course will repair and rebuild a churchyard
wall using flints and lime mortar. There will also be a demonstration of
flint knapping with the opportunity to have a go. The course will be of
interest to bricklayers, general builders and home owners. Simon is one
of the country’s few remaining flint knappers, dealing with the repair and
restoration of knapped flint walls as well as work on new developments.
No experience needed.
Fee £270
Lime Mortar & Conservation Brickwork
9 – 11 September 2015
Tutor: Mac Knox-Weir, Conservator and Consultancy
This three-day course aims to encourage correct brickwork repair and the
use of lime mortar. We will also look at a selection of different pointing
styles. The course is aimed working bricklayers or those with experience
who would like to broaden their knowledge in conservation techniques
under the tutorage of Mac Knox-Weir, Mac has been working with
brickwork for over 40 years and has worked on the repair of many high
profile buildings including Hampton Court Palace.
Cost £270
Timber Frame Repairs
8 – 10 July 2015, Little Horkesley
Tutor: Rick Lewis, Traditional Oak Company Ltd
This course will offer you the rare opportunity to learn new skills while
working on a traditional timber-framed building. The focus will be on
increasing awareness of the need to continue working with traditional
materials in a traditional style to ensure the survival and continuation of
our built heritage and our craft skills. During the course we will analyse
the repair strategy, look at how you choose the right timber, and carry out
various repairs to the structural frame of the building. The course has been
designed for working carpenters and joiners, but homeowners with basic
skills are very welcome. Rick runs his own carpentry business working
mainly in Suffolk where he has built up an excellent reputation for his high
quality work on the historic buildings in the area. His work ranges from
conservative repairs to ancient structures as well as new bespoke oak
framed buildings.
Fee £270
Lime Plaster for Beginners
23 October and 20 November 2015, Cressing Temple Barns
Tutor: Roy Cafferty, Traditional Lime Plastering
A one-day course, aimed at owners of historic buildings who want to tackle
small patch repairs to their homes and those with no prior experience. The
day will show how to hand-mix small amounts of lime plaster, and to repair
or replace patches. Roy runs his own plastering business and has been
in the trade for over forty years. He works in all aspects of lime plaster but
specialises in fine plaster finishes. No experience needed.
Fee £99
An Introduction to Traditional Brickwork Repair for Beginners
16 – 17 July 2015, Bures Baptist Church
Tutor: Mac Knox-Weir, Conservator and Consultancy
The course is aimed at beginners or home owners who would like to learn
about using lime mortars, how to tackle areas of repointing and bricks that
are spalling. No previous experience is necessary. Mac has been working
with brickwork for over 40 years and has worked on the repair of many
high profile buildings including Hampton Court Palace.
Fee £215
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Run Mouldings
25 – 26 February 2016 Cressing Temple Barns
Tutor: Roy Cafferty, Traditional Lime Plastering
A two-day practical course covering the art and craft of mouldings run
in situ. The course will begin with a talk on lime, with an emphasis on
ornamental work. We will look at interior, exterior and ornamental work
and is a rare opportunity to work with our tutor Roy Cafferty. Roy runs his
own plastering business and has been in the trade for over forty years.
He works in all aspects of lime plaster but specialises in fine plaster
finishes. He is one of the few lime plasterers who still run mouldings in
situ. The course is open to working plasterers who want to broaden their
experience, home owners and enthusiastic amateurs. No experience
needed.
Fee £215
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Build Your Own Bread Oven
4 March 2016, Cressing Temple Barns
Tutor: Tony Minter, Bulmer Brick & Tile and Mike Hogan
Take outdoor cooking to the next level by learning how to build a traditional
brick bread oven for your back garden. This course would be suitable
for homeowners, or bricklayers and builders who would like to offer their
clients something different.
Fee £115
courses available at
Orchard Barn, Suffolk
Essex County Council has teamed up with Orchard Barn to run
courses for those interested in finding out more about traditional
building methods. These courses take place at the beautiful Orchard
Barn in Far Ringshall, Mid Suffolk.
An Introduction to Timber Frame Repairs
14 April 2015
This course will enable you to understand traditional carpentry joints, make
an informed choice of timber, use authentic hand tools and undertake
an analysis of repair strategy. The course is designed for homeowners,
builders, architects, surveyors or anyone with an interest in learning how
to preserve timber frame buildings, CPD certification is available from the
Institute for Historic Building Conservation.
Fee £95
special events
Caring for Your Traditional Home
Saturday 22 August 2015, Cressing Temple Barns
This course will look at sympathetic methods of repair and show you
how a simple maintenance programme can avoid many of the problems
associated with historic buildings. We will look at why it is so important
that your building can breathe, how and why you should give your home
an annual health check, and give you basic advice on making your home
more energy efficient.
Fee £40 including lunch and refreshments
Caring for the Parish Church
Thursday 8 October 2015, Central Baptist Church, Chelmsford
Parish Churches are our most notable historic buildings, being not only
architecturally important but also symbols of the life and aspirations of
the communities in which they stand. This series of lectures will help
those involved in caring for church buildings through the labyrinth of legal
controls and give advice on making them more comfortable and versatile
buildings.
Fee £25 including lunch
In partnership with the Diocese of Chelmsford.
Restoration Skills for Home-Owners and Professionals
18 – 21 May or 14 – 17 September 2015
This four-day course includes presentations, demonstrations and practical
hands-on experience in repairs to timber frame, wattle and daub, lathe
and plaster, brick, flint and clay lump, as well as how to tackle the issue
of damp in the home. CPD certification is available from the Institute for
Historic Building Conservation.
Fee £385
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CPD lecture programme
Each lecture will consist of two one-hour talks. They will be of interest
to architects, surveyors, conservation professionals and planners for
specification writing and site supervision, as well as owners of historic
and listed properties. A light lunch and refreshments are included. All
lectures take place at Cressing Temple Barns unless otherwise stated.
The IHBC recognises that this programme may provide part
of the compulsory CPD requirements of a Full Member
Understanding traditional brickwork
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 4 September 2015
Speaker: Peter Minter, Bulmer Brick and Tile Company Ltd
The first of two courses be led by Peter Minter, a director of the family firm
Bulmer Brick and Tile Ltd, a company formed in 1936 which produces
bricks on a site where tiles were being made as early as the 15th century.
Peter is a national authority on old brickwork, and has been involved in
the repair of many famous historic buildings. In this first session, he will
trace how bricks are made, from the digging of the clay moulding and firing
them. He will explain how bricks have changed over time, how they can be
dated, what their historic characteristics are, and how we can attempt to
match them today.
£65 including light lunch
Heritage at Risk
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 18 September 2015
Speakers: John Ette - English Heritage and Dr Alan Coday,
Trustee-Director & East Anglian Chairman of the UK Association
of Building Preservation Trusts
About 4% of grade I and II* listed buildings are at risk. The figures for
the far greater number of grade II buildings are not known, but this is a
problem currently being investigated by English Heritage. The loss of
a historic building diminishes the landscape or townscape in which it is
located. Dilapidated landmark buildings blight their surroundings and
arouse public indignation. This seminar will look at the potential ways
forward available through the planning system and individual or community
initiatives, and at funding opportunities.
£65 including light lunch
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Working with Historic Brickwork: Approaches to practical problems
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 2 October 2015
Speaker: Peter Minter, Bulmer Brick and Tile Company Ltd
The second course presented by Peter Minter will look at how bricks are
used in construction, at mortars, pointing, bonds, arches, cutting and
rubbing techniques, and terracotta. It will cover the building of chimneys
and structural problems, and will be extensively illustrated with examples
from Peter’s experience.
£65 including light lunch
Building Pathology, Dampness and Timber Decay
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 6 November 2015
Speaker: David Watt, Hutton and Rostron Environmental
Investigations Ltd
Understanding historic buildings and monuments requires a range of
skills, including appreciation and understanding of historical development,
construction, condition, performance and use. This is especially
important when planning changes and interventions to historic fabric.
The discipline of building pathology – defined as the study of failures
in the interrelationships of building structures and materials with their
environments, occupants and contents – provides a structured,
evidence-based approach for investigations and surveys. Such an
approach is especially relevant when carrying out investigations of
dampness and timber decay, where it is essential to identify and treat
underlying causes rather than address only the effects.
£65 including light lunch
Carpentry and Joinery from Restoration to Regency
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 27 November 2015
Speaker: Joe Bispham, Historic Buildings Consultant & Contractor
This session explores the advances made in building construction and the
use of imported softwoods in the period from the restoration of Charles II
to the Regency period. In a little over 150 years England experienced a
building material shortage, a Great fire and the architectural influences of
the Grand Tour, all of these influenced the type of building materials used
and methods of building construction. It will also illustrate through case
studies, repairs to timber structures and external joinery, specifications,
craft practices and repair techniques.
£65 including light lunch
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Structural Repairs to Historic Buildings
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 4 December 2015
Speaker: Ian Hume, Structural Engineer
Standard engineering solutions to repair problems are often inappropriate
for historic buildings. Instead a conservation approach taking into account
their construction, materials and character is required. This seminar
considers some repairs to the structure of masonry and timber buildings
and the philosophy behind them. Ian is a structural engineer who has
spent the last 35 years dealing almost exclusively with historic structures
from the prehistoric to modern movement buildings. He was chief engineer
at English Heritage from 1987 until 1997.
£65 including light lunch
Good Design for Historic Buildings
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 12 February 2016
Speakers: Hilary Brightman and Natalie Drewett, Hilary Brightman
Architects & speaker tbc
Repairing and altering a historic building requires a mastery and
understanding of traditional materials and detailing, whilst extending
them raises more complex issues of avoiding damage to historic interest
and character, and achieving sympathetic design solutions. The scope
for altering historic buildings without harm to their significance, together
with successful design and detailing, will be explored and illustrated
with examples. The seminar will be of value to architects, planners and
homeowners.
£65 including light lunch
Heritage Statements and Impact Assessments
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 22 January 2016
Speaker: David Andrews, Historic Buildings Consultant & Libby
Kirkby Taylor, Colchester Borough Council
The National Planning Policy Framework emphasises the importance of
evidence based planning for proposals affecting the historic environment.
There is a requirement for applicants to identify the significance of the
buildings and sites involved, and the impact of their proposals on that
significance. These ‘Heritage statements’ now routinely accompany
listed building consent applications. This seminar will look at the policy
framework for heritage statements and impact assessments, how they
should be structured and what they should include. It will also cover
requirements for building recording.
£65 including light lunch
Tour of a traditional brick works & a guided walk through Bury
St Edmunds.
9am to 4.30pm, 18 March 2016
A rare opportunity to visit Bulmer Brick & Tile Company’s brickworks and
Bury St Edmunds in the company of one of the country’s leading traditional
brick-makers. You will look at and discuss the conservation and repair of
historic rubbed and gauged brickwork. The day will help professionals to
specify and oversee work in the correct manner, and will also be of interest
to the enthusiastic amateur.
Bats, Ecology and Listed Buildings
9.30am to 12.30pm, Friday 29 January 2016
Speaker: Duncan Painter, Applied Ecology
Historic buildings are ideal places for bats to roost and this lecture will
cover the types of places they roost, key indicators of bat presence
including building structure and physical evidence and also what to do if
you have bats. An overview of a bat survey as well as the law governing
historic buildings and bats will be looked at with case studies from listed
buildings used throughout. Other protected species will also be considered
such as owls and the Great Crested Newt.
£65 including light lunch
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£95 excluding lunch
conservation short courses at
Anglia Ruskin University
To find out more about the new conservation short courses at Anglia
Ruskin or the Building Conservation MSc contact Lewis Herbert
lewis.herbert@anglia.ac.uk or 0774 863 6153 or ring Dr Alan Coday
on 0845 196 3944.
working with
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terms and conditions of booking*
Paying for courses
Payment must be made in full at the time of booking.
Cancellation of course by Essex County Council
If the course is cancelled by Essex County Council we will refund you in full
or you may transfer on to another course within the same programme.
Cancellation of booking by attendees
If a booking is cancelled more than two weeks in advance of the start date
of the course we will refund you in full.
If a booking is cancelled fewer than two weeks before the course, booking
fees will not be refunded unless, the course is full and the place can be resold.
Changes to published information
At the time of publishing all information is correct, however Essex County
Council reserves the right to make changes to the programme
if necessary.
Any people booked on these events and affected by changes will be
contacted as soon as possible.
your thoughts*
Comment from Lime plaster course 2014
“Very informative, enjoyable and well organised. Would recommend to others, value
for money”
Comment from Timber frame Repairs 2014
“Excellent course I learnt so much, will go on other courses and would like to attend
timber frame again next year.”
“Great introduction to timber repairs, great tutor and great organiser. Thank you.”
Comment form Conservation Brickwork Course 2014
“Excellent course. Great to learn from a true expert. Hands on work gave great
opportunity to learn skills”
Comment from Bread oven course 2014
“We had a fantastic day, really informative, very well presented. Many many thanks.”
Comment from Lime Plaster for Beginners 14
“Mr Cafferty (tutor) achieved the near impossible – successfully imparting 40 plus
years of experience”
General Comments
“What a fantastic service for the council to offer, I wish our council was so involved.”
Attendee at the lime plaster course 2014
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respond*
Booking Form
To confirm your booking return this form with a cheque, payable
to Essex County Council, to: Katie Seabright, Historic Buildings &
Conservation, Essex County Council, County Hall, Chelmsford,
Essex, CM1 1QH.
Tel: 03330 136560 Email: traditional.buildingskills@essex.gov.uk
Please check availability before sending in payment.
Course name:
Date of course:
Name:
Company/organisation:
Address:
Post code:
Tel:
Email:
How did you hear about our courses
We may use your details at a later date to gain feedback on the
courses. Help reduce the amount of paper we use. Please tick to
receive course information via email. q
Thank you.
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DS15_4733
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Apply online at www.essex.gov.uk/admissions
The Traditional Building Skills training programme is delivered by Place
Services, a team of specialists in building conservation, design and the
environment providing expertise and advice for local planning authorities.
By email:
traditional.buildingskills@essex.gov.uk
Visit our website:
www.placeservices.co.uk
By telephone:
01245 437 672
By post:
Place Services
Essex County Council
P.O.Box 11
Chelmsford
CM1 1QH
Read our online magazine at essex.gov.uk/youressex
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facebook.com/essexcountycouncil
The information contained in this leaflet can be translated,
and/or made available in alternative formats, on request.
Published January 2015.