New Group of Craftspeople and Architects to Embark on Our Unique Heritage Training Programmes

Our Scholarship and Fellowship schemes are designed to broaden the skills and experience of conservation professionals working with old buildings. Find out more about these unique programmes, this year’s cohort, and why they can’t wait to get started. 

Craftspeople 

Every year, we select four craftspeople with a passion for old buildings and send them on a journey across the UK and Ireland, to deepen their knowledge of traditional building crafts. 

We’re delighted to announce this year’s Fellows: (clockwise) James Bull, carpenter and millwright; Ellie-Jae Dobson, bricklayer; Jim Brearley-Ratcliffe, carpenter; and Marlène ‘Marly’ Lagnado, stonemason. 

From March to December, these four craftspeople will travel the country together, learning traditional craft techniques from experts in the field, and developing their approach to building repair. 

The Fellowship programme covers a wide variety of craft skills, including timber framing, lime plastering, thatching, blacksmithing, pargeting, flint knapping, stained glass, stonemasonry, bricklaying, slating and tiling. 

In addition to this core programme, James Bull, our Millwright Fellow, will take on placements with experienced millwrights to hone his skills in this critically endangered craft. 

Scholars

While the Fellowship is designed for craftspeople, we also run the Scholarship, a unique training programme for architects, surveyors, and engineers to gain the skills and knowledge they'll need to work with traditional buildings. 

This year's Scholars are architects Chloe Chambers, Jen Langfield and Hannah Bass, and architectural designer Sarika Jhawar. 

Like Fellows, the group will travel the country learning on site from specialist craftspeople and building conservation experts.

Crucially, Scholars and Fellows spend some of their time travelling together, sharing knowledge and learning about each other's professions, bridging the gap commonly faced in the workplace. 

The journey ahead  

It’s the practical, collaborative aspects of the programme that architect Hannah Bass was drawn to: “I am particularly looking forward to the hands-on aspect of the Scholarship, learning about traditional construction and materials in practice, rather than from behind a computer screen or from a book.  

“The opportunity to spend nine months seeing such a range of traditional buildings, and meeting so many craftspeople and others working in the conservation field is one that I wouldn’t get anywhere else.” 

Scholars and Fellows will start their adventures in March. For stonemason Marly Lagnado, it can’t come soon enough.  

“I am looking forward to seeing my notebook full of scribbles, to “wowing” over new facts, to having my brain hurt from too much thinking, and to recap with the fellows around a pint. But right now, what I am looking forward the most is simply to start the journey!" 

Want to see their journeys upfold? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, or LinkedIn. 

We are grateful to everyone who makes the Fellowship and Scholarship programmes possible, including Alan Baxter Foundation, The Drake Trust, The Dance Scholarship Trust, Historic England, Delves, William Morris Craft Fellowship Trust, and more.