SPAB Scotland Working Party at Tibbermore Church

Event details

Wednesday 12 June - Sunday 16 June 

Join us to help repair this historic church inside and out and learn traditional building craft skills along the way – including lime pointing, plastering and harling, Scots slating, and signwriting. 

Our friendly Working Parties are a great space to learn about building conservation, whether you’re a total beginner or a seasoned professional. In true SPAB Scotland style there’ll also be a celebratory ceilidh at the end of the week, so you might even learn some traditional Scottish dances, too! 

Historic Churches Scotland rescued this 17th century church many years ago and we’re delighted to partner with them now to carry out these much-needed repairs. 

With hundreds of Scottish churches at risk of being sold off, we hope to show how communities can come together to protect historic church buildings for the future. 

Who is this event for?

Working Parties are warm and welcoming spaces for all – whether you’re a building conservation professional, student, or someone who wants to help out their local building or learn new skills. 

Programme

The event starts on Wednesday 12 June, with arrival from 4.30pm and a welcome BBQ at 6pm (please bring your own BBQ food). 

From Thursday to Saturday, we’ll work on site from 9am to 5pm each day, with plenty of breaks for refreshments. 

On Saturday evening there will be a celebratory ceilidh that’s open to all. 

The events ends at 12pm on Sunday 16 June.  

Please note that you'll occasionally see visitors on site as we have a school group visit on the Friday and a small public Open Day on the Saturday. Our repair work will continue as normal throughout. 

You will learn 

You will come away with a taster of a wide selection of traditional building craft skills including: 

• Lime mortar and pointing
• Lime harling
• Lime plaster
• Scots slating, including some timber repairs
• Signwriting

You might also learn some traditional Scottish dances!

You will need to bring

• PPE: steel-toed shoes, hard hat, safety gloves, safety goggles. High-vis jackets will be provided. 

• Camping kit: tent, sleeping mat, sleeping bag, torch etc. 

• Mess kit: water bottle, mug, cutlery, plate/bowl, thermos. 

• Personal kit: medicines, toiletries, sunscreen, insect repellent, towel etc. 

• Clothing: warm changes of clothes, woolly hat, sunhat, warm gloves, spare shoes. 

Tutors

Andy Newcombe is a highly experienced site manager and stonemason who has overseen two of our previous Working Parties.

Owen Bushell, our signwriting tutor, is a signwriter, millwright and 2022 SPAB Fellow. He will also be guiding our mortar mixing and lime mixes.  

Ross Harris, is our plastering tutor but trained originally as a cabinet maker before undertaking the Kings Foundation Building Craft Programme.  

Chris Menzies, our slating tutor, works for Stirling City Heritage Trust as a traditional building inspector, he also trained with the Princes Foundation specialising in roof slating. 

Bursaries

We have some funding for bursaries for this event which will include the ticket price and a contribution towards travel. If you are interested in applying, please email scotland@spab.org.uk with a copy of a current CV, and cover letter explaining your reasons for applying. The deadline is Sunday 5 May 2024. 

Accessibility

At this event, you can expect the following conditions: 

• Seating available 

• Uneven surfaces 

• Significant periods of standing, walking and kneeling 

• Narrow staircase and low-level balconies 

• Time spent working outdoors 

• Loud noises 

• No/limited heating 

• Catering for dietary restrictions, if indicated on the booking form 

Anything we can do to make this event more accessible for you? Please email scotland@spab.org.uk. 

Supporters

This event is brought to you in partnership with Historic Churches Scotland, who own and care for Tibbermore Church.

Thank you to Masons Mortar, who have kindly sponsored the lime used at this event, and will be in attendance at the Open Day, and to Perth Tesco, who are generously supplying some of our refreshments.

We may take photos or videos at this event to be used in future promotion, including in print and online.

All bookings are subject to our Terms and Conditions. 

Photo credit: Tibbermore Church © Lucy Stewart