A man on scaffolding repointing a historic structure
Repointing in progress on a historic building © Historic England Archive. Image Reference DP181673
Repointing in progress on a historic building © Historic England Archive. Image Reference DP181673

The Heritage Building Skills Programme

The Heritage Building Skills Programme is a major five-year in-work training and apprenticeships programme in the North of England, running from 2021 to 2026. It is now in the evaluation stage.

Contents
  1. Programme Aims
  2. A new training model
  3. What we delivered
  4. Contact details

Programme Aims

The programme aims to:

  • Reduce shortages in heritage craft skills
  • Improve the condition of Heritage at Risk (HAR) sites
  • Create viable career opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds

A new training model

The programme pioneers a new training model, which has two main elements:

  • A three-tiered training scheme for craftspeople to gain direct experience at critical points in their careers
  • On-site training with expert teams at some of the country’s most valuable historic buildings and places, identified by Historic England as ‘at risk’ and in need of rescue.

Tier 1 Prepare:

11x 9-week placements with heritage construction firms for students on full-time construction courses. Students are paid a bursary by Historic England and paired with a mentor to help them develop their career aspirations.

Tier 2 Enter:

19x apprenticeships with heritage construction companies, which will allow students to complete a mainstream construction apprenticeship qualification. Apprentices are employed by Historic England and seconded to heritage construction firms.

Tier 3 Sustain:

14x flexible opportunities for work-based training with very specialist heritage companies. Students are paid a bursary by Historic England.

What we delivered

The Heritage Building Skills Programme has created 44 opportunities for apprentices and trainees, hosted by heritage construction firms, in trades including plastering, bricklaying, roofing, carpentry, stained glass, and stonemasonry. While the programme will not be completed until 2026, 33 apprentices and trainees have graduated as of February 2025.

Participants have participated in at least one residential Summer School, during which they contributed to the repair and restoration of a Heritage at Risk site, attended workshops on a wide range of heritage craft skills, and gained at least one qualification.

Apprentices and trainees also benefited from a training day in York, focussed on working on archaeological sites, and at Appleby, where attendees learned about sustainability and how trades were working together in the conservation of Appleby Moot Hall.

Case studies

Gallery

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

People wearing hard hats peeping up through ceiling joists. A person chiselling a mortice into a plank of wood while another looks on. A person holding a decorative plasterwork. People stand at one end of a room with windows running the length of the room and exposed floor joists. Scaffolding covering building structure on a mound. A person pointing a roof. A person steaming cleaning a stone pillar. A person carving a flower out of a circular wood block. People sanding down wood on a bench.

Contact details

The programme is now in the evaluation stage and is no longer recruiting. For information on other opportunities, visit Training & Skills Development Opportunities.

Please contact us at [email protected] if you would like more information about this scheme.

Editor’s note: this programme was called The Hamish Ogston Foundation Heritage Building Skills Programme until October 2023.

Also of interest

Meet Andrew Addison, Heritage Building Skills Programme Roofing Apprentice
Meet Pinnacle Conservation, Host Organisation for the Heritage Building Skills Programme