Recent work:

Action on Skills Training in the Historic Environment Conference – April 2008
Conservation in Architectural Education (A report on the 2005 workshop held in Bath)

The ICOMOS-UK Education and Training Committee, under the direction of the ICOMOS-UK Executive and ICOMOS International Training Committee (CIF) has set out the following objectives:

• to promote the ICOMOS International Guidelines on Education and Training in the Conservation of Monuments, Ensembles and Sites
• to promote ICOMOS and ICOMOS charters to education and training providers and students

• to provide a platform and facilitate debate on the changing needs of education and training in the broader field of conservation with an international perspective

• to sustain a collaborative dialogue with education and training providers, students and trainers in the UK
• The membership of the Committee represents experienced professionals, policy makers and educators from the broad field of conservation and heritage management. The Committee maintains active links with other ICOMOS committees and education and training organisations in the UK.

The work of the Committee

The work and current focus of the Committee comprises the following areas:

ICOMOS international guidelines form the basis for UK conservation education programmes and professional accreditation schemes. The Committee through ICOMOS-UK supports these initiatives and actively promotes the use of the guidelines and other ICOMOS international charters in education and practice.

A key consideration of the Committee is to see a more inclusive approach to existing and historic buildings in mainstream architecture education. Initially working with the Royal Institute of British Architects and architecture education providers the aim is to explore means of improving the integration of reuse and conservation into architecture teaching with a view to developing similar collaborative efforts with the disciplines of structural engineering, town planning and landscape architecture.

Over recent years there has been a growth in training provision in the field of heritage management. By bringing together the fields of conservation, heritage management and tourism, the committee has been exploring opportunities to develop links between the various courses and linked disciplines. A seminar entitled Culture, Heritage and Tourism: exploring the educational boundaries in 2003, with UK and international participants, identified the need for better dialogue between course providers and major employers in the field of heritage management.

The Committee coordinates ICOMOS linked scholarship programmes and wherever possible supports scholarship and exchanges.

The educational activities of ICOMOS-UK feature strongly in the core aims of the organisation both nationally and internationally. They range from improvements in standards in the conservation and management of the cultural heritage, the promotion of ICOMOS international charters and international best practice. Education and training is a major export sector for the UK and specifically in the field of cultural heritage where British expertise is highly regarded. With its international links ICOMOS-UK plays an important role in promoting UK courses.

The work of the Committee ties into that of the ICOMOS International Training Committee (CIF) and benefits from international expertise and experience.

In September 2006 the Committee organised a successful workshop Conservation in Architectural Education: Making a Case, in Bath. The workshop was hosted by the University of Bath and supported by English Heritage, and followed a two day seminar organised by The American Institute of Architects (AIA) Historic Preservation Group, on the theme of integration of historic preservation on architecture courses. The purpose of the workshop was to bring together practitioners, educators and policy makers to discuss the current place of conservation training in relation to architectural education and identify a way forward.

Read the Bath Workshop Report (PDF)

Members

Dorian Crone (Chair)
Michael Forsyth
Peter Gouldsborough
Roger Joyce
Lesley Kerr
Aylin Orbasli
Florence Salberter
John Taylor