C O N T E X T 1 4 1 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 5 51 Church of St Mary Cropredy, Oxfordshire Expressions of interest are invited from suitably experienced conservation-specialist building contractors for works to this Grade I listed church, for the PCC of St Mary’s, Cropredy. The project will include repairs to lead roofing, rainwater goods, weathervane, tower louvres and clock dial, together with reordering, to include installation of new services and a new servery. It is anticipated that tender documents will be issued to no more than four contractors in October 2015, and that work will start on site in Spring 2016. Please submit your expression of interest, together with details of a minimum of three historic building projects completed within the last five years, to: Bryan Martin, Architect, 36 Banbury Lane, Byfield, Northants NN11 6UX email: bryan@bryanmartin.co.uk are approaching the process in the right way by first commissioning a proportionate historic buildings appraisal and heritage statement that identifies the special interest and significance and uses this to test proposal options for any harm. The habit is still too engrained of simply drawing up the client’s wish-list and then, when it is demonstrated to be harmful and therefore unacceptable, blaming the conservation officer. I strongly urge all members to play their part in breaking this destructive and wasteful cycle. If you are in private practice, make sure that the above reports are front and centre of any proposals. If you are in the public sector, refer applicants to paragraph Context goes out to members five times a year and the IHBC Yearbook is sent to members plus 3,500 other key conservation industry contacts annually. Contact Cathedral Communications to get your message out to the right people this year. Cathedral Communications Limited 01747 871717 ihbc@cathcomm.co.uk www.buildingconservation.com The home of the conservation professional BUI LD ING · CONS ERVATION I NSTITUTE · OF · HI STORIC · 128 of the National Planning Policy Framework and insist on it being submitted. The best place for owners to commission this work from is, of course, the IHBC’s HESPR (Historic Environment Service Provider Recognition) page. If you are in practice and have not already done so, I suggest it would be beneficial to join HESPR today. Now we are in the post-holiday period, the rounds of meetings and the various groups have recommenced in earnest. I am already juggling my work diary with my commitments to the IHBC and the various reform initiatives with partner organisations set up since I became chair. Perhaps more of that next time. For now we must all wait with some trepidation the coming spending round.Whatever degree the cuts are implemented (models for a 40 per cent budget reduction have been demanded by the government), they will make the option of doing nothing and simply hoping to weather the storm a non-starter. Of course, public sector cuts often lead to a slowdown in related economic activity for the private sector, so I fear all may feel the coming chilly blasts. As perhaps alluded to in the opening paragraph, change will be forced upon us and it will not be comfortable.We should frame ourselves for some very difficult times and some tough choices. Mike Brown, chair@ihbc.org.uk
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjgyMjA=