Future of old buildings could be in danger
Published Date:
14 May 2008
THE future of millions of old buildings, including churches, barns and houses, could be at risk because of a serious shortage of specialist workers, a new report has warned.
More people with traditional building crafts such as stonemasons, thatchers, dry stone-wallers and slate roofers were needed to be trained, said the National Heritage Training Group.
The shortage of craft workers has eased in recent years, but there was still a skills and knowledge gap.
Many people working on the repair and maintenance of older properties did not have the proper skills or materials, it was claimed.
Research showed that many people were finding it hard to find joiners, roofers and carpenters, while levels of satisfaction with repair work have declined "considerably."
There are only 507 fully accredited conservation professionals in the UK from a base of half a million architects, engineers, surveyors and conservation officers, equivalent to one accredited surveyor to every 85,000 old buildings, and one engineer to every 276,000, the study showed.
The full article contains 175 words and appears in News Guardian newspaper.
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Last Updated:
08 May 2008 11:14 AM
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Source:
News Guardian
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Location:
Whitley Bay
