Elli Reviews the IHBC Event for Structural Repair of Historic Buildings

Reflecting back on an event that I and my colleague Leanne Tindle attended last Autumn, we have had a few months over a busy Xmas to consider and think through the content…

This in-depth, accessible look at the structural side of building conservation – from philosophy and techniques to causes and prevention was delivered by the wonderful Ian Hume (DIC MIStructE DiplConsAA Institute for Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) who as the former chief engineer with English Heritage was ideally paced to share his many years of expertise through a day consisting of a mixture of lectures, case studies, workshops and discussion.

Leon Walsh (Principal Structural Engineer) and Alison Church (Senior Structural Engineer) from Historic England were also an integral part of the day attending to facilitate and contribute to group discussions.

The day was a great opportunity to catch-up with historic built environment professionals from across the north of England, both from a social point of view and for professional exchange of ideas and experiences.

The discussion on the day highlighted the range of structural repair options afforded by the continued use of traditional methods and materials of construction on hand and the more robust interventions enabled by the introduction of new and/or modern materials to a structure.

The day will nevertheless probably stay in the mind of all who attended mostly as the day we learned about the felling of Sycamore Gap Tree through – the collective feeling loss and disbelief in a group of people who passionately care about the historic environment and appreciate its value to the human experience, was palatable.

Elli is Principal Heritage Consultant for Built Heritage for AB Heritage and our Designated Service Adviser under the IHBCs Historic Environment Service Provider Scheme (HESPR).

HESPR provides an informative directory of heritage and conservation professionals practising across a range of disciplines who meet the conservation standards expected by the IHBC.

The IHBC provides substantial resources for the care and conservation of historic buildings on their website and can be accessed here.