The Building Limes Forum (BLF) is holding a Traditional Buildings Weekend at the Manx Museum, Douglas, on the Isle of Man from 30 April to 2 May.

It follows the success of the Traditional Mortars Symposium in York last year. This year the BLF is offering the building heritage sector (and anyone else who wants to attend) an opportunity to participate in this three-day masterclass, from Thursday to Saturday, that will once again be a mixture of lectures, practical demonstrations and visits to historic sites.

The lecture programme commences on the Thursday (30 April) by examining the challenges facing traditional buildings and the options available to adapt them for the harsher climate being experienced as the result of global warming.

On the Friday there will be practical demonstrations, such as the use of clay mortars and hemp/lime renders to improve thermal performance of stone structures.

On the Saturday there will be a tour of abandoned buildings at Sulby to discuss how they could be conserved. A tram ride from Snaefell to Douglas will conclude the weekend. It will go via Laxey Wheel, which lays claim to being the largest working waterwheel in the World.

Nothing is officially planned for the Sunday.

Ashley Pettit, an Isle of Man architect and committee member of the BLF, has arranged the event. He says: “This event stems from the recent encouragement from the Conservation Forum (Ise of Man) for more support for traditional buildings and the enormous interest we received for last year’s symposium in York.

"This is a chance for delegates to learn more about the care of traditional buildings, gain practical experience of natural materials and understand the importance of Manx rural buildings and some of the issues regarding their future.”

The weekend will include an opportunity to take behind-the-scenes tours of Matcham theatre as well as visits to a Camera Obscura and the terraced house of architect and artist Baillie Scott, and Englishman who took up residence on the Isle of Man and built this house there.

The weekend is £180, or £60 for individual days, for BLF and Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) members. Otherwise it is £200 for the weekend, or £60 for the Thursday and £75 for each of the othet two days. You have to organise your own travel and accommodation.

Click here for a booking form.

Click here for more about the event, travel details and other useful information. 

The Building Limes Forum is a recognised Institute of Historic Building Conservation CPD provider.

Coronavirus and Flybe. Since the event was organised, the Flybe airline has failed and the coronavirus Corvid-19 has escalated. Unless all gatherings are banned, the Traditional Buildings Weekend will go ahead, even if it is as a local event if travel to the Isle of Man proves officially inadvisable.