IIB  THE SECOND DISCUSSION

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  • Overview
• Notes From The Day
  • Opening Discussion
  • Second Discussion
  • Working Groups
• Presentations
  • Stephen Davis
  • Peter Lobban
  • HRH The Prince of Wales
  • David Lammy MP
• Actions
  • Cirencester College
  • Craft Skills
• Delegates
• Acknowledgements
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The aim of this session was to...

• respond to issues raised in their addresses by HRH The Prince of Wales and David Lammy MP
• attempt to map what is being achieved in the provision of training at either regional or national level
• establish individual perspectives on the training issue
• frame actions

• Carol Souter, HLF, outlined the HLF training bursary scheme. The HLF trustees have set aside £6 million for 10 partnerships. These will provide hands-on training in the care and conservation of the landscape, and will run for 3-4 years to establish if the scheme is going in the right direction.
• Graham Hall, UKSkills, said that we need a primary schools initiative similar to the one he has seen in Helsinki.
• Seamus Hanna, English Heritage, said that CITB-Construction Skills have people going into schools but we still need traditional skills ambassadors with whom young people can identify. English Heritage is working with the DfES to see where heritage can be placed in the National Curriculum.
• Alistair Collin, CITB-Construction Skills, confirmed that 40-50 people are being employed to go into schools. There is also growing awareness of CITB-Construction Skills and its training initiatives.
• Hank Dittmar, The Prince’s Foundation, said that energy consumption in buildings accounts for some 45% of the energy used in the UK, contributing significantly to carbon emissions. It is therefore absolutely crucial that we find more sustainable ways to construct and run our homes, offices, public buildings etc. For example, by designing buildings that fail to account for seasonal climatic variations we create a legacy of life-cycle inefficiency through elaborate heating and cooling solutions. All this leads to increased waste. Natural materials, as well as traditional building methods, are increasingly being seen as mitigating unsustainable building practice, have low embodied-energy values, are easily repairable and, used appropriately, have longer life spans than industrially produced components. Training in traditional building crafts can also confer broader benefits at local level by contributing to long-term economic and social balance in communities.
• Kate Pugh, Heritage Link, said there is to be an out-of-school learning manifesto published by DfES, “Education Out Of Classroom”, that will help give students access to environment skills. Building and traditional skills need to get such a programme running now. DfES is presently consulting prior to publication. The heritage sector should make sure that its resources are well-recognised by teachers who will be making use of this programme.
• John Ward, builder, said that training at £30/head can’t be achieved. VAT revenue goes straight to the Treasury rather than into the industry for training. Within the tendering system, there are weak attempts to go to value-added quotes but generally, the lowest quote wins. It is difficult to encompass training as contractors have no guarantee of their future revenue, but heritage skills still need to be carried into the future.
• Sir William McAlpine, The Natural Stone Institute, said that when one pays a little, one loses a lot. As John Ruskin said in 1890 - “the lowest bidder does not give the best deal”. Money put into conservation is often wasted. In support of the two-stage tender system, if we get building and project contracts right, the rest will fall into place. On-the-job training is needed.
• Peter Lobban, CITB-Construction Skills, said that in the South of England, 70% of workers in the construction industry are self-employed while in Scotland 70% of the construction workforce are employees. Production and design should be integrated but this does not happen because of the procurement process. CITB-Construction Skills has set targets to work with funding bodies to put training forward as an investment.
• Brendan McCathy, National Trust, said that the NT has to be careful with their spending and thus training plans with a longer-term approach are better. Snowshill Manor is an example where working with partners is beneficial as the restoration was done under-budget and on time. It is essential to integrate and engage trainers and construction companies.
• Philip Venning, Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, said that SPAB has had to rely almost entirely on charities to fund the four Fellowships annually for the William Morris Craft Training Programme in building conservation but now has a contributory grant from English Heritage.

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