Stone Federation Great Britain’s Quarry Forum gives its opinion on issues relating to the stone industry from the point of view of companies that extract dimensional stone from opencast and underground quarries and mines.

“This is the best stone sourcing tool I have encountered in my career.”

This is just one example of the feedback that the Stone Federation Quarry Forum has received about the ‘Welcome to British Stones’ tool on the Federation’s website.

The tool is based around the simple concept of connecting architects, designers and specifiers with quarries near to their projects across the length and breadth of the United Kingdom. 

For many years the Federation has been receiving calls from environmentally conscious architects looking to find stone from quarries close to sites.

This is one of those occasions where history repeating itself is a good thing.

In centuries past, due to the limitations on transporting heavy materials long distances, stone would be brought from quarries no more than a couple of hundred miles from the project. 

Some of the best examples of this can be found in Oxford, with the heavy use of Clipsham Stone; in Edinburgh, where local granites have been used; and in London, with all its Portland limestone, chosen by Wren after the Great Fire of 1666 and still used today.

What’s more, thanks to the wise foresight of city and town planners, the protected status of many of the buildings in these cities means that, where possible, any repair work must be carried out with stone from the original quarry.

The ‘Welcome to British Stones’ tool on the Federation website lists more than 80 stones from 30-or-so Stone Federation member quarries.

The list includes limestones, granites, sandstones and slates in a wide variety of textures and colours. It is without doubt a rich resource for any architect, designer or client looking to explore what British stone has to offer their project.

Why is any of this worth highlighting?

Because British stone is on the up. Architects, designers, specifiers and clients are all showing an increasing interest in not just the environmental benefits, but also the beautiful aesthetic of British stones. 

How do we know this?

Twitter is one of the best social gauges, a digital thermometer of public interest, if you will.

A quick glance at the stats show that in the past 12 months almost half-a-million Twitter users have viewed, engaged with and clicked for more information about content to do with #BritishStone.

Indigenous stone is something architects and designers are talking about and want more information on.

The 2016 Natural Stone Awards were also an encouraging confirmation of the growing interest in British stone, with 88% of the Award-winning, highly commended and commended projects involving British stone. 

This also highlights the fact that the interest in indigenous stone is not limited to one sector or application.

The awards categories include Interiors, External Cladding, Repair & Restoration and Landscaping, all of which included many projects among the entries that incorporated the natural stones Britain has to offer the architectural and design professions.

So if you are looking for British stone, take a look at the ‘Welcome to British Stone’ tool yourself. Go to bit.ly/BritStone and start quarrying for information about the stone for your next project. It is easy to use with links to producer websites.