It would cost £585million and take 1.4million mason-days to carry out all the repairs needed on the stonework of Glasgow\'s buildings. That\'s the conclusion of a two-year study by the Scottish Stone Liaison Group (SSLG) into which stones have been used on which buildings in Glasgow, the current condition of them, and the future needs for stone and skills to repair them.

The report, Safeguarding Glasgow\'s Stone-built Heritage, produced from the research was launched at Glasgow City Chambers this month (August). There was considerable interest from the Scottish press, TV and radio and representatives of a dozen local authorities were among more than 80 people at the launch. Others present were from Scottish Enterprise, who funded the report, universities, and the construction industry. With the methodology of the study established, SSLG hope other parts of Scotland will produce similar reports so that demand for stone and masonry skills throughout Scotland can be predicted more accurately to help quarriers identify markets and open (or re-open) sources of stone and trainers provide courses.

If all the repairs necessary in Glasgow were to be carried out in the next 20 years, an additional 236 masons would be needed in the city each year. In 2005, the intake of students on masonry courses at Scotland\'s three training centres was just 41 and only 10 of them were from Glasgow. Likewise with stone. Research carried out by the British Geological Survey (BGS) for the Glasgow Project shows that 395,000tonnes of four different kinds of red sandstone and six kinds of blonde sandstone would be required to complete all the repairs necessary.

In 75% of cases where stone had been used for repairs it had been chosen by architects or clients, usually on the basis of colour rather than petrographical compatibility. In some cases that, too, had led to accelerated decay. Alan McKinney, chief executive of the SSLG, likened the use of the wrong stone to "putting a cuckoo\'s egg in a nest". Alan, who was performing his last official duty before retiring as the chief executive of the SSLG, described the launch of the report as a "very satisfying conclusion" to his working life.