Context 170 - December 2021

Editor Rob Cowan Editorial Coordinator Michael Taylor, ihbceditorialboard@gmail.com Editorial Board Tom Copp Nigel Crowe Peter de Figueiredo (book reviews) Rebecca Madgin Andrew McClelland Fiona Newton Louise Priestman Gordon Sorensen Jonathan Taylor Michael Taylor (chair) Cartoons by Rob Cowan Context is distributed to all members of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation. © Institute of Historic Building Conservation 2021 ISSN 0958-2746 Publisher Cathedral Communications Limited, High Street, Tisbury,Wiltshire, England SP3 6HA 01747 871717 context@cathcomm.co.uk www.buildingconservation.com Non-member subscriptions to Context Context is available to corporate bodies at an annual subscription rate, including postage, of: United Kingdom £60.00 Elsewhere £90.00 Context on-line archive Past issues of Context can be viewed on the IHBC website. The archive provides a searchable database and reference for key articles. See www.ihbc.org.uk/page55/ context_archive. The views expressed in Context are not necessarily held by the IHBC or the publisher. Neither the publisher nor the IHBC shall be under any liability whatsoever in respect of contributed articles. We gratefully acknowledge the support of firms whose advertisements appear throughout this publication.While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this issue of Context is current and correct, neither the IHBC nor the publisher can be held responsible for any errors or omissions which may occur. Context themes and copy deadlines Context is published four times a year in March, June, September and December. The next three themes and copy deadlines are: High Streets , March, issue 171 (14 January) Regulations and codes , June, issue 172 (8 April) Diversity , September, issue 173 (8 July) Please contact Michael Taylor at ihbceditorialboard@gmail.com to discuss any editorial submissions or for information about the Context editorial board. 2 C O N T E X T 1 7 0 : D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 Briefing The sector’s climate response The UK heritage sector is united in its pioneering response to climate change, according to Heritage Responds , a report launched ahead of COP26 by the Historic Environment Forum, charting how heritage organisations are taking positive action. The report brings together the expertise of the country’s leading heritage organisations – including English Heritage, Historic England, the National Trust and the IHBC – to highlight examples of heritage sector’s response to climate change how through revolutionary research, carbon reduction and maximising the potential of the historic environment. Examples quoted include Kenwood House (pictured) in north London, where English Heritage has worked on a pilot for state-of-the-art monitoring sensors. The project involved installing self-contained sensors to discreetly monitor building and environmental factors in real time, allowing a response to risks and helping to understand, manage and reduce electricity, gas and water consumption, lowering costs and reducing the carbon footprint. Another example is Bath Abbey’s newly restored floor (pictured), which features underfloor heating using renewable energy from Bath’s hot springs. The context for COP26 John Preston writes: By the time you read this, COP26 will be over, and we will be getting into the nitty-gritty. At the time of writing, we are still waiting for the UK Government’s Heat and Buildings Strategy; no draft was published for consultation, unlike the Scottish government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy, which emerged in final form in October. Bath Abbey: underfloor heating uses energy from the hot springs (Photo: Stephen Girling/Bath Abbey) Kenwood House: state-of-the art monitoring helps to lower costs and reduce the carbon footprint (Photo: English Heritage)