As students pass under the scrolled pediment at the entrance to Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College they are smiled down upon by a little character hidden in the Bath stonework above them.

It has long been the privilege of carver masons to leave their trade mark behind in their work and this little character was the mark of Austin Emery, one of PAYE Stonework & Restoration\'s specialists.

Working on the carving coincided with the birth of his son, Archie, and it was in celebration of his fatherhood that he added the character, peering from behind an ornamental fruit flanking the carving\'s central figure.

The replacement of decayed Bath stonework and carvings were part of PAYE\'s contract to clean and repair the college.

Austin Emery has also lately been working on replacement stone carvings at the Old Bailey law courts and the Palace of Westminster, the seat of Parliament. And yes, the work he has carried out there does carry his own individual contributions that will, no doubt, delight future generations of masons and conservators.