C O N T E X T 1 2 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 2 41 service must be considered carefully by prospective employers, not least given the obligations to employees. No less important, when using recruitment companies – as many do now to secure quality appointments, or transfer risk – employers need to brief them about the importance of using our service, as many have no idea of who we reach. A charity employer may be generating inordinate risks for its trustees if it, or its recruitment service, baulk at spending, say, the 0.007 per cent of one year of salary to make sure that they are at least targeting the right sort of candidates. Too often the budget micro-detail seems to take priority over the actual risk. It is ironic that, as trusteeships and placements increasingly appear on our service, reflecting the need to promote opportunities appropriately, employers still try to save pennies notifying prospective employees. The problems are the same for the non-charity, even if the legal responsibilities are less clear. So if you do see any relevant job adverts that fail to reach our website, be sure to let the employer know the opportunities they are missing (our web services have more than 200,000 page views a month) and the risks they may be generating. This brings us to the actual jobs themselves, as they underpin the IHBC’s membership.We have had some traumatic times recently, and threats loom large. But the IHBC has done much to shape, protect and generate jobs. The following is a taster: • The Penfold Report on planning reforms in England, although written within a wider deregulation over which we have no power, promotes a service agenda that encourages focus on a quality-assured, outcomes-based service fully in harmony with what competent local authority conservation services can deliver or oversee. Thanks to the input of our policy committee, it specifies the IHBC’s skills as a model for the sector. • CITB/CSkills, the UK training entity for the construction sector, has a projected turnover for 2012 of £249 million. Its draft forward plan, benefiting from our lobbying, requires future training to ‘cater for skills and knowledge needs relevant to different types of building fabric/age, including pre-1919’. As heritage skills are integrated into mainstream construction, opportunities for the conservation professional, not least in training and standard-setting, can only increase. • In terms of accreditation, we have a national occupational standard (NOS) in the wings ready to serve as a conservation template across the construction sector. The additional credibility of having been written alongside planning and building control NOSs is invaluable. As it is mapped against our membership criteria (and ICOMOS guidelines too, of course), we have delivered a firm specification for employers and clients to demand the skills our members offer. This is just part of the infrastructure that the IHBC has secured in recent times. These changes will make the skills of IHBC members increasingly desirable, even essential, and ensure that IHBC membership can become the mark of the conservation professional. We have a long way to go, no doubt, but we have come a long way in addressing the key interests of our members: jobs, jobs and jobs. Seán O’Reilly, director@ihbc.org.uk Caroe& Partners Architects Wells | London | Cardiff | Ledbury Tel 01749 677561 | info@caroe.co.uk | www.caroe.co.uk Charterfields has extensive experience in valuing heritage property on behalf of owners, occupiers, risk managers and brokers. The accuracy of a declared value is an essential feature of any cover programme. A common challenge is understanding the correct value, which is essential, as under-insurance may lead to a shortfall in a claim settlement, whilst overinsurance simply results in excess premiums being paid. We offer a wide range of insurance valuation services for all classes of material risk. For further information please contact: Neil WarburtonFRICS IRRV (Hons) Tel: 0870 0434170 Email: neil.warburton@charterfields.com www.charterfields.com Specialists in insurance valuations of heritage property The knowledge of value
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