To celebrate National Mills Weekend, join us for a springtime walk around beautiful Dean Village with its 800 years of milling history.

Led by tour guide Estelle Meyer and stone conservation expert Nic Boyes, we’ll explore the area’s fascinating industrial history and discuss some of the conservation and building maintenance issues we spot along the way.

The walk will also include entry into the rarely open St Bernard's Well, a wonderful Greco-Roman building housing a natural spring.
Who is it for?

This walk is for mills enthusiasts, Edinburgh residents, or visitors who would like to learn a little more about the city’s forgotten industrial past.

You will need:

- Please wear sturdy footwear and dress for the weather on the day.

Speakers:

- Estelle Meyer is an architect, historian and tour guide at Cobble Tales Tours.

- Nic Boyes is a stone conservation consultant and SPAB Scotland Guardian.

This is our third visit to the house and more opportunities will be available as the project proceeds.

This is a unique opportunity to see a house that is almost uninhabitable and in a very poor state. The appearance from the front is deceptive and it is not what it might appear to be.

The property was formerly owned by a local estate and repairs and maintenance is sparse to the point of being non-existent. What has been done, has been done poorly. In this one building we now have the opportunity to see close to being a full text book of building survey defects. It is a really special opportunity for anyone learning, those interested in old buildings and those who are looking for greater experience.

You will get to see the whole building and, as a group, we will discuss how a pre-purchase building survey might be undertaken on it . You will be within a safe and nurtured environment in a very small group of like-minded people. Use the opportunity to ask any questions that arise. There is no such thing a silly question.

By the end of the training you will be more confident and aware of..:

- Understand your responsibilities and liabilities as a professional building surveyor
- Have a better understanding of the client needs for having the survey done
- Take a methodical approach to the process of doing a building survey
- Identify a range of common defects found in this type and age of building
- Make better decisions on the advice that you will provide to your client
- Learn about when it might be necessary to make a referral for further inspections
- Have better confidence in yourself
- Be able to write confident and well presented reports for your client


Training Format

This training will be delivered in-person at the house, which is located in Cranborne, Dorset – BH21 post code area. It is a private residence. The full address and joining instructions will be given after you have purchased a place on the course.
Suitability

Professionals from a wide variety of disciplines including residential surveyors and valuers, building surveyors, architects, and structural engineers as well as the many conservation trades will benefit.

This is also perfectly suitable for anyone with a general interest in older buildings. That can include homeowners and buyers, for example. Students, from all backgrounds, will find this especially valuable to their learning.

It will be particularly suitable for those who have some limited experience of doing RICS Level 2 and Level 3 building surveys and want to know more about older buildings. It might also be suitable for more experienced surveyors who wish to broaden their knowledge of this period of architecture.

This training is open and available to everyone. Please do consider your own personal circumstances and your ability to use stairs as this is very likely to apply to the venue, town walk and/or any private property visit. There may be uneven terrain and during any walkabout we may be crossing roads. Do let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments and we can discuss this further and try to adapt where possible.

Join the Heritage Network Trust for a series of online talks that explore how we 'Rescue, Reuse & Regenerate' our town centres. The second talk in the series, 'Bangor 'Arts-based regeneration in a seaside town' will look at how Open House Festival, a small independent arts charity, has created its own arts venue in a converted Court House in Bangor, a struggling seaside town in Northern Ireland. Alison will talk about festivals and events as powerful tools for placemaking, and how regeneration can start with ordinary people doing extraordinary things

Don’t rip out your sash and case windows! Come and learn how to carry out your own repairs.

Did you know that in most cases you can undertake simple repairs, retain these period features and ensure the value of your traditional building is not compromised?

This practical course will prove invaluable if you have a property with Sash and Case Windows. We will cover a short history of the development of windows before looking at the different components that make up a window and the issues to consider when approaching repairs.The course will allow attendees to identify and address various problems that commonly occur with sash windows. Topics covered will include window dismantling and reassembly, replacing ropes, weights, panes and putty. Various repair and improvement techniques will also be covered. 

Course Suitability

This course is aimed at those who own or are responsible for a traditional building and those responsible for maintenance works to buildings such as churches or those considering a renovation or conversion project.

We are always happy to help learners choose the right course. Please contact us if you would like to discuss which course is suitable for you.
Learning Outcomes

Understand how sash and case windows work
Ability to identify problems
Ability to re-rope a sash
Ability to replace glazing and putty
Understand the painting requirements for sash and case windows
Understand the options for improving the thermal qualities of single glazed windows

Course Programme

Topics covered include

Introduction to Sash Windows;
Typical Problems & Solutions;
Undertaking repairs;
Making and installing replacement components;
Protection and Appearance;
Options for improving thermal qualities.

A collaboration between Georgian Brickwork and Terrence Lee Conservation, this one-day seminar examines the development and success of brickwork between 1660 and the end of the Georgian period in 1830.

By adopting a single philosophical approach, domestic buildings of all sizes reached new levels of standardisation. Yet for some in society, position and wealth projection was everything and therefore, clever deceits in brickwork found a receptive audience.

9.30am
Registration & Refreshments

9.45-10am
Welcome & Introductions
Fitted Rigging House Training Room

10am-12pm
Lecture by Terrence Lee of Terrence Lee Conservation
Fitted Rigging House Training Room
This lecture will examine the fundamental changes in domestic brick-built houses that occurred between 1660 and 1830. Through scrutiny of brickwork construction, styles, finishes and features Terrence will examine the Georgian love affair with facadism.
(Comfort break 10.45-11am)

12-12.45pm
Lunch & Tea/Coffee
Sandwich Lunch

12.45-1.45pm
Small Group Activities

Group 1: led by Terrence Lee
Discussion and demonstration of Tuck Pointing
Unit 6: Craft Workshop Area

Group 2: led by Charles Reilly of Georgian Brickwork
A guided walk within the Dockyard campus and discussion of brickwork repair and restoration
Meet outside Unit 6

1.45-2pm
Group Changeover & Comfort Break
Unit 6

2-3pm
Small Group Activities

Group 1: led by Charles Reilly of Georgian Brickwork
A guided walk within the Dockyard campus and discussion of brickwork repair and restoration
Meet outside Unit 6

Group 2: led by Terrence Lee
Discussion and demonstration of Tuck Pointing
Unit 6: Craft Workshop Area

3-3.45pm
Plenary: Q&A session
Fitted Rigging House Training Room

Part of Conservation in Common, a cross-disciplinary series of events for professionals working in the built heritage sector.

Talk hosted by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings

The climate crisis is the single biggest challenge facing humanity, and the construction industry must play a huge role in tackling this. However, as the saying goes, the greenest building is the one that already exists, so carefully examining how existing building stock can be re-used in a sustainable way is crucial.

SPAB strongly believes that sensitive improvement and repair of historic buildings is a sustainable approach, which can reduce the impact of the built environment on the climate. This approach to building conservation offers a ‘simple message of sustainability’ since, in William Morris’s words, ‘we are only trustees for those that come after us’.

This talk examine why we should value our historic buildings for both their beauty and their sustainability, the role that building maintenance has to play in protecting our built heritage, and some ways that greater energy efficiency in old buildings can be achieved.
About the speaker

Tríona Byrne is a co-founder of the Irish branch of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) and served as Chair for 5 years from its foundation in 2017 until 2021. She is a Structural Engineer working on conservation projects on buildings of all ages, style and size in the greater Dublin region. She completed the SPAB Scholarship in 2017 and is a SPAB Trustee. She is on the Conservation Group committee of Engineers Ireland and has been involved with the ICOMOS Ireland National Scientific Committee on Energy, Sustainability and Climate Change. She is a member of the Building Limes Forum of Ireland and the Dry Stone Walling Association of Ireland.

A unique opportunity to view Charles Brooking’s collection of architectural details compiled since the 1960s. Artefacts from historic buildings that were being altered or demolished have been selected to illustrate their evolution and development. Visitors will also have access to the extensive research library.