NEWSLETTER

The contribution of members is vital to the success of the NSI. If you haven’t joined yet, details of membership are given in this newsletter. Finally, I would like to thank all those who have helped with NSI activities over the past year. I look forward to working with you again in the New Year.

Sarah Bailey
Education & Development Officer, NSI

NSI Hosts 3rd Annual Lecture

The 3rd NSI Annual Lecture was held on Thursday 16th November, at Stirling Castle. The evening began with a fascinating presentation by Peter Buchanan, Project Manager for Historic Scotland, who spoke about the restoration of the Great Hall. Following the talk there was a tour of the hall to enable attendees to the work that had been undertaken.

The NSI would like to thank the following stone companies who generously supported the Annual Lecture:

• EBS Construction
• Fyfe Glenrock
• Hunter & Clark Ltd
• Hutton Stone Co Ltd
• Kirk Natural Stone
• Stancliffe Stone Company Ltd
• Stirling Stone
• Tradstocks
• Watson Stonecraft

Deconstructing Slate
Natural Slate Workshop:
23rd November 2006

Aimed at architects, planners and practitioners working in the urban or rural environment, the Deconstructing Slate seminar was designed to offer a reappraisal and fuller understanding of the often complex issues involved in procuring and using a material whose qualities have stood the test of time.

Speakers for this full-day event included independent slate consultants Dr Joan Walsh and Terry Hughes, Dr Neil Grieve of the University of Dundee and Colin Tennant of the Scottish Stone Liaison Group. The seminar began with a review of the different types of slates used in Britain. It posed the question of how to assess the quality of a slate, looking at British and the new European slates.

Presentations also covered new methods of testing the relative durability of a slate, with a view to predicting its whole life cycle costs. To conclude there was a review of the challenges of sourcing new British slate for the repair and maintenance of the built heritage. Feedback from the seminar was excellent and further events are planned for the New Year – look out for details on the NSI website.

England’s Heritage in Stone

The papers from the England's Heritage in Stone conference will shortly be published via the Geoconservation Commission website. www.geoconservation.com/GCCdocs/yorkconf.htm

Organised by the GeoConservation Commission, the conference was held in York on 15–17 March 2005. Themes included the historic use of stone, conservation practice, supply of stone, planning issues associated with the use of indigenous stone, and the training of practitioners.

Guide to Restoring and Maintaining Historic Buildings

A guidebook has been produced by South Lanarkshire Council to help all property owners in the Douglas Townscape Heritage Initiative area (THI) restore and repair their historic buildings.

Alison McCandlish, THI project officer, said: "If you own or occupy a traditional building in Douglas this guide will help with suggestions on how you can contribute positively to the regeneration of the village. Historic properties are constructed in a different way from modern ones so the guide has examples of how a traditional house and a modern house differ and why historic properties should be repaired using traditional methods and materials".

For those based outside the Douglas THI area the booklet is a concise and simple-to-use introduction to the maintenance and repair of historic properties and a checklist of issues to look out for.

To obtain a copy of the guide, call Alison McCandlish on 01698 455650 or e-mail: Alison.McCandlish@southlanarkshire.gov.uk

Pevsner Online

The entire 48 hardback county volumes and paperback city guides in The Buildings of England series is now searchable as a database of over 550,000 records. The new CD-ROM comprises an index to the latest versions of all county and London volumes, plus the city guides published since 2001.

Designed for architects, historians, researchers, planners, designers, conservators, heritage professionals, librarians, and building enthusiasts, the Index allows searching by personal name, place or site, building type and artefacts or contents across selected or all volumes, thereby providing unique access to the series contents.

The Index is also now available on annual subscription online, with extra facilities, via the new Pevsner Index web site - www.pevsnerindex.co.uk to provide index access to new editions of Buildings of England volumes, subject to agreement with the publisher. CD-ROM buyers will be entitled to discounted subscription to this service.

Prices (inclusive of VAT and p&p) vary from £200 to £75 according to user. To order a CD-ROM or to request further information about an annual website subscription contact:
Michael Good
11 Australia Court
Cambridge
CB3 0JA
UK
Tel: 01223 316382
Email: info@pevsnerindex.co.uk

English Heritage Project

English Heritage is organising a project to bring together published and unpublished information on building – including vernacular - stones into an Atlas of English Building Stones. The volume will cover all the usual geological topics with a focus on current and historic quarries.

Currently there is very little accessible information on the stones used for historic buildings in England and the specific quarries they came from. This is especially so for vernacular stones.

It is envisaged that an individual will be commissioned in each county to write up their area to a consistent format. Where unpublished work is concerned the project will rely on the willingness of individuals to make their research available.

Information on quarries will be published via a free access GIS, similar to the British Geological Survey BritPits database. It is hoped that the whole of England can be covered in a three-year period.

If you require further details or are in a position to contribute information to this project, contact Project manager Terry Hughes at terry@slateroof.co.uk - mark the subject of the email ‘Stone Project’.

Researchers at the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and the Built Environment have recently completed a project which will see them safeguard the traditional building skills required to preserve and maintain the nation's heritage.

The 15 month project, which was part financed by the European Social Fund, has produced a DVD and web site, which together include a rich collection of interviews, practical demonstrations, historical information and case studies, all aimed at ensuring the skills needed to maintain Scotland's historic buildings do not disappear entirely.

The project's online content aims to support specialist built heritage maintenance, repair and conservation skills in a range of traditional trades including leadwork, stone masonry.

With his team, Dr Richard Laing, Reader at the Scott Sutherland School, interviewed and filmed a host of skilled tradesmen carrying out work in historic buildings across the North-east including Crathes Castle and Haddo House. He said, "The reason we applied for funding for this project is that we became aware that these skills were beginning to die out, which could result in inappropriate methods being used to restore old buildings. If you use modern construction methods in old buildings, it can lead to a whole raft of physical problems."

The School is currently exploring ways to incorporate the material in its undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, including the potential for study up to MSc level.

The work has been completed in collaboration with a range of partners, including the National Trust for Scotland, Historic Scotland, the Construction Industry Training Board, and Banff and Buchan College in Fraserburgh, where some of these skills are taught.

Footage of the interviews is available from: www.rgutraditionalskills.co.uk

NSI Membership

Who can benefit from membership of the Natural Stone Institute?

The NSI aims to offer support to everyone seeking knowledge and information on the use of stone in new build, conservation or repair and maintenance programmes. It is not bound by geographical boundaries and seeks to expand its international contacts and to work in conjunction with similar like-minded bodies on issues of mutual interest.

By becoming a member of the Natural Stone Institute, you will encourage further development to advance the considerable progress already achieved by the NSI.

There are four forms of Membership:

• Ordinary Members: £15.00
• Student/Retired Members: £5.00
• Corporate Members: £150.00
• Overseas Members: £75.00

To join the NSI, please contact us at the address given at the end of the newsletter.

NSI excursions 2007

Following previous successful excursions, we are looking for ideas for the 2007 programme. We are particularly interested in excursion opportunities outside Scotland.

If you have any suggestions, please contact Sarah Bailey at the NSI office. Details of forthcoming trips will be posted on the NSI website http://www.nsiuk.org and publicised via the newsletter.

Building Conservation Masterclass

22-25 January 2007
Conservation of Stone Surfaces and Detail
Course Code: BC3D94
John Ashurst

A collaboration in specialist training between West Dean College, English Heritage and The Weald & Downland Open Air Museum.
Fully inclusive residential fee: From £524
Non-residential fee: £410

For further information contact the Building Conservation Masterclasses Coordinator at West Dean College, West Dean, Chichester, West Sussex, PO18 0QZ.
T 01243 818219/811301
F 01243 811343
E-mail: bcm@westdean.org.uk
Web: www.westdean.org.uk

Problem Stone Day

New Armouries, HM Tower of London
Thursday 1st February 2007

The Icon Stone & Wall Painting group and English Heritage are pleased to announce a one-day conference to consider the issues regarding the conservation of Purbeck Marble, Clunch, Septara, Reigate and Magnesian Limestone.

The Conference will be held on Thursday 1 February 2007 at the New Armouries, HM Tower of London. Tickets cost £55 for non-members, £50 for Icon members and £20 for students. The fee includes coffee, lunch and post-conference drinks.

For further details of the programme and a copy of the registration form go to the Events section of the ICON website: www.icon.org.uk

PLEASE NOTE THAT FOR SECURITY REASONS YOU MUST REGISTER BY 24 JANUARY 2007

Craftsmen of Beverley Minster

A Continuing Tradition
Saturday 17 March 2007
The Parish Room, Beverley
10.00 – 16.30

A day school organised for the Friends of Beverley Minster on the work of craftsmen involved in creating and maintaining this beautiful building. Speakers include Jenny Alexander, Paul Barnwell, Nicholas Dawton and Ian Stewart. The event will include guided tours of the roof, sculpture in the nave, and masons’ marks.

The cost of £12 (Friends of the Minster £10) includes morning and afternoon refreshments. To book email davidjcant@hotmail.com