R E V I E W 23 studied any other higher education courses is available through the government loans scheme for the FdSc and BSc top-up. The Carpenters’ Company also has a number of scholarships available to assist FdSc students for which separate application is required through the BCC. However, a problem for career changers who already have a degree is noneligibility for government loans. Stonemasonry tutors at the college already have the contacts to help students obtain heritage skills experience and qualifications. We plan to expand the BCC’s portfolio of heritage crafts skills training over the coming years to develop a centre of excellence. COTAC My initial role with COTAC in the early &$s was to establish a national network of heritage training centres with the intention of o"ering a full range of training from hands-on craft to professional training in each region. As grant funding dwindled in the late &$s, servicing COTAC became increasingly di!cult and alternative sources of funding were sought through involvement in European grant-funded projects. This strategy developed useful training materials and built a strong European network of contacts. However, COTAC was conscious of the ever-increasing built heritage training needs in the UK, which were not being met, partly due to the application of COTAC’s resources in Europe. Consequently, at the turn of the millennium COTAC and the Heritage Building Contractors Group approached the chief executive of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) for support with sector training and education. The timing of this approach proved to be ideal. English Heritage had just carried out a wide-ranging review of historic environment policies at the request of the government, which led to the Power of Place report being published in December #$$$. This was followed in December #$$% by the publication of The Historic Environment: A Force for Our Future by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions. With a third report published in #$$#, Sustaining Our Living Heritage by Host Consultancy for the Heritage Lottery Fund, there was a persuasive body of research calling for greater coordination of craft training. Furthermore, this research linked the need for traditional skills to the repair and maintenance of England’s five million plus traditionally constructed buildings. This led to the first ever Craft Summit in February #$$/, which brought together the national heritage bodies, the CITB and organisations with an interest in training for the sector. The result was the formation of the National Heritage Training Group (NHTG), comprising contractors, leading heritage bodies and training providers from across the UK. Funded jointly by English Heritage and CITB-ConstructionSkills through a sector skills agreement, the NHTG was tasked with establishing a coherent system of training and skills provision to meet the demands of traditional building crafts. Since NHTG’s formation, COTAC’s team members have provided substantial support to the organisation and its personnel, currently including its vice chair, chair of the professional education and training group, treasurer and myself as London and South East regional heritage skills coordinator. Initially in this role I assisted in the establishment of a London regional network and I am currently delivering the HLF-funded Building Traditional Skills project through the NHTG (see below). COTAC organises annual built heritage conferences and works with ConstructionSkills and the Construction Industry Council to develop and update heritage qualifications (NVQs). It also encourages employment of craftspeople with appropriate qualifications and CSCS cards. It works for recognition and wider use of professional accreditation schemes by clients and grant-giving bodies throughout the British Isles as well as ensuring the equivalence of schemes through the Edinburgh Group. COTAC is also responsible for the maintenance and updating of the www.understandingconservation. org website, which is based on ICOMOS training and education guidelines. The website provides guidance to practitioners who are seeking building conservation accreditation. In particular, it provides a self-assessment regime that helps practitioners compile appropriate evidence to demonstrate their knowledge. Heritage brickwork bursary holder Alan Brown constructs a gauged brick arch
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