Historic England is once again heading a heritage section of the Natural Stone Show, which is taking place in London at ExCeL from 30 April to 2 May. Sharing the area will be the English Stone Forum, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) and the Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC).

Historic England will have a range of its stone-related publications available and it will be demonstrating the online, interactive Strategic Stone Study that it produced in conjunction with the British Geological Survey. It shows which stones from which quarries have been used in which buildings.

The IHBC is the UK’s lead professional body for built and historic environment practitioners working for the conservation, care, regeneration and future of the UK's historic places.

The Institute exists to establish, develop and maintain the highest standards of conservation practice, to support the effective protection and enhancement of the historic environment, and to promote heritage-led regeneration and access to the historic environment for all.

Historic England and the English Stone Forum are also organising the one day Conservation conference on 2 May, the programme of which is set out below. It covers issues of material selection and appropriate skills for repairing England’s stone heritage, as well as a selection of updates on current conservation research.

Historic England and the English Stone Forum are also organising the one day Conservation conference on 2 May, the programme of which is set out below. It covers issues of material selection and appropriate skills for repairing England’s stone heritage, as well as a selection of updates on current conservation research.

The conference is free to attend and will be held in the South Gallery rooms above the Natural Stone Show. 

The Conservation Day is fully IHBC CPD-accredited.

The morning session, hosted by the English Stone Forum and chaired by Dr Tim Yates, considers the issues of material selection and appropriate skills for repairing England’s stone heritage. In the afternoon, Historic England offers a selection of updates of current conservation research, chaired by Chris Wood.

2019 programme

11:00-11:30
Sourcing stone for repairing historic buildings: resources and guidance
Speaker: Stephen Parry - British Geological Survey

11:30-12:00
Specifying and selecting stone: a stone supplier’s perspective
Speaker: Bernard Burns, Chair of Stone Federation Heritage Group

12:00-12:30
Repair and conservation of historic slate and stone slate roofs: training and guidance
Speaker: Terry Hughes - Stone and Slate Consultants Ltd

12:30-13:00
Stone Masonry and Conservation Training
Speaker: Claire Wallbridge - Natural Stone Industry Training Group

13:00-13:30
From tradition to innovation – COTAC’s role in developing training for the built heritage
Speaker: Ingval Maxwell, Chair - Council on Training in Architectural Conservation (COTAC)

14:00-14:30
Conserving Purbeck marble
Speaker: Nick Durnan - Nicholas Durnan Conservation

14:30-15:00
Concrete repair: an international review project
Speaker: Nicki Lauder, Senior Building Conservation Advisor - Historic England

15:00-15:30
Biocides: efficacy on stone - a research project
Speaker: Philip Skipper, an experienced microbiologist who has spent 10 years on government research and development projects in the South of England.

15:30-16:00
Review of cathodic protection of embedded metalwork in masonry
Speaker: David Farrell - Rowan Technologies Ltd