Ideally situated in North Wales, at Wm. Taylor Masonry Contractors we believe in quality through experience. Experienced in all aspects of Architectural Stonemasonry, Building, Restoration and Conservation we are able to deal with projects both on large and small scales.

Whether we are making a component for a Grade I Listed building or for a new build project, our well equipped workshop brings state of the art technology together with age old crafts and techniques.

We are based in North Wales, close to the Cheshire boarder where the A494 meets the A55, just to the West of Chester. This makes us easily accessible from Wales, the Midlands and throughout the entire North West.

Operating from Lincolnshire and Norfolk, we provide archaeological services across the East Midlands and East Anglia

The majority of our projects are commissioned on a commercial basis, to provide information in support of planning applications, or as measures to mitigate the impact of development upon the archaeological resource. We comply with all published guidelines and standards for archaeological work and our reports are accepted by specialist advisers to all of the planning authorities in our core areas of Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Peterborough and Northamptonshire.

We carry out desk-based assessments, heritage statements, environmental impact assessments, trial trench evaluations, surveys, excavations and historic buildings recording.

For a free written quotation for your project please use the contact details opposite. To establish the scope of work we usually require details of the precise requirements of the planning authority (often set out in a brief issued by their archaeological adviser) and the nature of the project, preferably including plans showing the main areas of potential ground disturbance.

The Wood Awards is the UK’s premier competition for excellence in architecture and product design in wood. Established in 1971, the Wood Awards recognises, encourages and promotes outstanding wood design, craftsmanship and installation.

The Wood Awards’ elite independent judging panel not only judges all submitted entries but also visits the shortlisted projects in person, making the Wood Awards a uniquely rigorous competition. The Awards are split into two main categories: Buildings and Furniture & Product. The Gold Award is given to the project that the judges deem to be the winner of winners.

The buildings judging panel is led by Jim Greaves of Hopkins Architects. The furniture and product panel is led by design critic, curator and journalist Corinne Julius. The full 2021 judging panels will be announced in due course.

The Wood Awards shortlist and winners all receive exposure through the competition’s PR and marketing. The Wood Awards shortlist will be announced in September and everyone involved in a shortlisted project will be invited to attend the Wood Awards ceremony held in London in November. The shortlisted projects will be on display at the ceremony as well as at an exhibition held earlier in the year. All Wood Award winners receive certificates.

The William Morris Society aims to perpetuate the memory of one of the greatest men of the Victorian, or any, age. The life, work and ideas of William Morris (1834-1896) are as important today as they were in his lifetime. The Society exists to make them as widely known as possible.

The variety of Morris’s ideas and activities bring together those who are interested in him as a designer, craftsman, poet, and socialist, who admire his robust and generous personality, his creative energy and his courage. His ideas on how we live and how we might live, on creative work, leisure and machinery, on ecology and conservation, on politics and the place of arts in our lives remain as stimulating now as they were over a century ago.

The Society, established in 1955, publishes a Journal, Newsletter and commentaries on all aspects of Morris’s work and runs a varied series of talks and visits throughout the year. It encourages the re-publication of Morris’s works and the continued manufacture of his textile and wallpaper designs.

The Society’s office and museum are in the basement and Coach House of Kelmscott House, Hammersmith, Morris’s London home for the last eighteen years of his life. During this time he ran his manufacturing company, Morris and Company, at Merton Abbey, he founded the Kelmscott Press and he held Socialist League (later the Hammersmith Socialist Society) meetings in the Coach House. Today the Society’s talks and other events are held in the Coach House; it also hosts exhibitions of works by Morris and his wider circle. See our Events and Our Museum pages for details.

The Vernacular Architecture Group was formed in 1952 to further the study of traditional buildings, originally those of the British Isles. In recent years, its membership and publications have also reflected a growing interest in buildings from other parts of the world.

Members are involved in all aspects of the recording and study of vernacular buildings including:

- Detailed local or regional surveys
- Studies of particular types of buildings including houses, farms, industrial and urban buildings
- Building materials
- Techniques of building, including carpentry and masonry
- Documentary evidence

The Group encourages communication between members in a number of ways:

- A four day conference held each spring in a different region
- A two-day winter conference with papers on one topic
- An occasional joint weekend school with Oxford University's Department for Continuing Education
- Publication of a journal
- A twice-yearly newsletter with notices of events and new publications
- A library of offprints for circulation to members (index available on Members' Area)

The Group produces a refereed journal of national standing - Vernacular Architecture - the authoritative voice on the subject. All members automatically receive a copy of Vernacular Architecture and are eligible for free online access to current and back issues. See the Publications page for full details.

Verity & Beverley, Architects and Designers are a creative and innovative practice experienced in the conservation, restoration and refurbishment of listed buildings, new houses, modern structures within historic environments and interior architectural design.

Originally founded in 1871 by Thomas Verity the practice designed numerous iconic landmark buildings throughout the United Kingdom including The Criterion Theatre in Piccadilly Circus, the Pavilion at Lord’s Cricket Ground, Scarborough Spa and many of the Art Deco theatres and cinemas for the Paramount company.

Based in Tetbury in Gloucestershire since 1981 we have built up a strong reputation throughout the Cotswolds and surrounding Counties for our pragmatic yet creative design approach with both traditional Cotswold vernacular and also contemporary new buildings and alterations to meet modern living requirements.

The secret to long term success in the construction industry is client confidence. Our clients return to us time and time again because they feel safe in the knowledge that we will use all the skills, experience and resources at our disposal to fulfil their requirements.

A company with history - Valley Builders is a family run business based in East Grinstead, West Sussex. Founded by Richard Kenneth Slatter in 1972, we have built an enviable reputation for both the quality of our work and the service to our clients.
Our team

Our in-house teams have extensive skills and experience in carrying out high quality, sensitive works. We employ our workforce directly and train everybody to the highest standards.

We are always happy to arrange for prospective clients to meet with former clients on site to see our work with their own eyes.

If your particular requirements are not covered or you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact us. We will be pleased to discuss how we can help.

Full references can be provided on request, including financial accounts.

Urban Vision Enterprise is a social enterprise providing professional services in planning, regeneration, economic development and third sector organisational development.

We are Chartered Town Planners specialising in …

- Planning mediation
- town centres and high streets
- heritage-led regeneration and conservation
- urban design, including design review
- community engagement and consultation
- housing needs and sites assessment
- feasibility and viability studies
- project business plans
- community-led development and projects
- training, continuing professional development (CPD) and education
- authoring of guidance and briefings
- third sector (not-for-profit) organisational development.

Our clients

Clients include government and funding bodies, UK and national professional bodies and membership organisations, local authorities, parish councils, neighbourhood forums, third sector bodies and local community groups. These include the Heritage Lottery Fund, Locality and the National Trust. Urban VisionEnterprise directors have extensive experience of dealing with urban and rural areas, including city and town centres and villages all around the country.

Urban Vision Enterprise is an IHBC recognised historic environment service provider (HESPR), and a corporate partner with Design Council. We are also ISO9001 registered.

Founded in 1978, the Urban Design Group (UDG) is a campaigning membership organisation with over 1000 members who care about the quality of life in our cities, towns and villages, and believe that raising standards of urban design is central to its improvement.

The UDG website contains a wealth of information for anyone interested in urban design including details of urban design practices, university courses, publications and job vacancies, as well as future urban design events. Our regular email newsletter Urban Update is a one-stop-shop for urban design news, articles and blog posts.

We are premier providers of high-end specialist construction and restoration services. We have an impressive history built upon craftsmanship, integrity and responsibility; delivering specialised multi-disciplined construction and restoration expertise across diverse sectors in London and nationwide.

USL has an impressive history built upon craftsmanship, integrity and responsibility; delivering specialised multi-disciplined construction and restoration expertise across diverse sectors in London and nationwide.

Since our inception in 1939, USL has been recognised as trusted, long established and technically capable restoration specialists, able to meet the high-end demands of virtually any assignment, however complex.

Our reputation stems from a wealth of experience built over many years in the conservation and heritage building industry and, above all, the talent of our people. We have a collective proficiency that few can match including; highly skilled craftspeople, artisans, engineers and professional construction professionals with widely divergent backgrounds, experience and expertise.

Our highly acclaimed portfolio speaks for itself; including landmark projects on listed buildings, castles, places of worship, commercial, new builds, academies, museums, monuments and structures of social significance.

We see ourselves as more than just construction experts – we are craftspeople and our clients’ partners. As a result, our projects are as far-reaching, unusual and diverse as our expertise.

We never provide an out-of-the-box answer to a challenge. Instead we’ll develop a bespoke solution, ensuring the right people are involved throughout the project, giving our clients’ visibility and confidence every step of the way.

Established in 1959, COTAC’s founding principle was in its recognition of the need for specialists to properly specify and oversee work involved in repairing and conserving historic buildings and churches. Over the years COTAC has persistently and influentially worked to lift standards, develop training qualifications and build networks across the conservation, repair and maintenance sector of the construction industry. As a Charity this has involved working influentially with national agencies, professional and standard setting bodies, educational establishments and training interests.

The Council's 21st century objectives are to advance the education and training of all those involved in the protection and preservation of the historic environment that is of cultural, architectural or historical value, and to provide knowledge in support of training and education in the arts and skills required to protect and preserve it. To advance conservation education and training and support its knowledge base, COTAC will adopt an integrated lay, craft, specialist and professional approach, whilst engaging with a wide range of interested parties to achieve its aims.
Stacks Image 194200
COTAC is a UK registered charity No 1162750. The charitable purposes of COTAC are as follows:

- Set, maintain and promote standards for conservation education and training;
- Develop, produce and promote education and training materials:
- Collaborate with other organisations, voluntary bodies and agencies with interests in conservation with a view to influencing and promoting relevant issues;
- Promote courses at all levels in conservation of the historic environment which are relevant and in accordance with recognised criteria;
- Publish relevant material;
- Arrange seminars, conferences and participate in exhibitions relating to relevant heritage issues;
- Provide bursaries and other support for relevant studies and course attendance.

Ulster Architectural Heritage is the lead independent voice for built heritage in Ulster. A not for profit organisation, UAH works to promote the value of built heritage, its protection, conservation, and regeneration for people and communities. The Society produces books, organises lectures and outings, undertakes planning campaigns, consultancy work and works with other bodies to raise awareness of the built environment.

UAH also run and maintain the Heritage at Risk NI register in partnership with the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities.

Promotion– highlighting the significance and value of the historic environment by encouraging people, communities and their elected representatives to engage with it.

Protection– promoting recognition of the fragility of the historic environment and ways in which it might be better protected.

Conservation– promoting the care, restoration and repair of the historic environment, and traditional building skills essential to assist with this.

Regeneration– promoting heritage-led regeneration, highlighting ways in which it can be achieved in order to contribute positively to social, cultural and economic wellbeing.

The inaugural meeting of the United Kingdom Cast Stone Association (UKCSA) was held on 20th February 1991, following discussions during late 1990 between the leading manufacturers of cast stone at the time. UKCSA was formed as an independent trade association to increase specifiers’ and contractors’ awareness and confidence in cast stone and to establish and maintain the highest standards of product quality and usage.

In February 2022 the Cast Stone Association celebrated its 31st anniversary as the guardian of quality for cast stone, and has grown to become the first point of reference for all matters regarding cast stone. UKCSA is an ethically, socially and environmentally responsible trade association.

The Association represents the leading UK manufacturers of cast stone, and associated trades. All cast stone manufacturing Full Members, and Associate Members, must comply with the criteria established by the Association as a condition of membership.

What is Cast Stone - Cast stone is finding a growing market. It can add distinction and value out of all proportion to its cost. The material has caught the imagination of architects, builders and their clients from the classical past in Britain to the present day. There’s a simple reason why. It can transform plain facades into something special. It offers class at an affordable price.
What is Cast Stone?

The UKCSA and British Standard definition for cast stone is “any material made with natural aggregates and cementitious binder that is intended to resemble and be used in a similar way to natural stone.”

Cast Stone is often referred to by alternative names such as reconstructed stone, reconstituted stone, artificial stone, synthetic stone, manufactured stone, art stone etc, with reconstructed stone and reconstituted stone being the most common, but the preferred name is ‘cast stone’. The British Standards have further stated that “Specifiers, manufacturers and users of cast stone are advised to avoid terms such as ‘reconstructed’, ‘reconstituted’, ‘artificial’, ‘synthetic’ ” as “These adjectives could imply that the named stone (e.g. ‘reconstructed Portland stone’) is the sole aggregate”.
St George Plot-1

Cast stone is made by using one of three main manufacturing methods, semi-dry, wet-cast or fibre reinforced. It must meet the requirements of BS1217: 2008 or, better still, the more stringent requirements of the UKCSA Standard.

Cast stone is ideal for architectural dressings that call for fine detail around entrances, openings and gables. All types of architectural dressings can be produced – large, small and structurally reinforced. Cast stone can take the form of garden ornamentation and also ashlar masonry where it is often referred to as reconstructed stone.

We campaign to save outstanding buildings and design that have shaped the British landscape since 1914. Some are iconic, others are little-known gems, but all of them are irreplaceable and many are under threat.

The Twentieth Century Society was founded in 1979, as a direct response to growing interest in C20th architecture and to complement the preservation work of the Victorian Society, which was founded in 1959.

From day one, our focus has been on preservation and education: campaigning to protect the buildings and design that characterise C20th Britain; helping as many people as possible to appreciate their importance and beauty.

Today, we are involved in a number of important campaigns, all of which involve our experts, members, volunteers and supporters. We undertake casework related to planning applications for listed buildings, as we have a statutory role in the planning system.

The C20 Society runs a busy schedule of events (including guided tours, conferences and lectures) and publishes books and a thrice-yearly magazine, C20. The income from these activities is used to fund our campaigns, casework and running costs.

You can explore our history interactively on the C20 timeline or read a more detailed history, written by Gavin Stamp and Alan Powers.

The Traditional Paint Forum (TPF) was set up in 1994 as a membership forum for discussing and promoting a better understanding and appreciation of traditional paint.

If you are interested in the myriad of issues involved in the use of traditional paint, in an architectural context, your membership of the Forum could support the ongoing debate and we would welcome your involvement.

The holistic nature of the organisation is perhaps best reflected in its Annual Workshop and Conference where the papers given on the architectural and historical significance of particular decorative schemes are given greater depth by contributions on paint-analysis; conservation techniques; cleaning and redecoration. This is usually supplemented by practical demonstrations of the original techniques and materials used and possible new alternative paint materials that might be worth considering.

The Annual Conference is reinforced by an annual journal containing articles on a disparate number of topics, but often including papers delivered at the conference, and a newsletter, ‘Smudge.’

The TPF have also organised some very successful Paint Days, which give an introductory overview to traditional paint technology and, through popular demand, have been repeated on a number of occasions in different United Kingdom locations.

The Traditional Paint Forum is interested in the influences, personalities and circumstances that gave rise to particular decorative schemes in an architectural context.

But, very importantly, we also believe the only way informed judgments can be made about the significance and future of existing or lost schemes is to also understand what materials were used to create them and how they were executed. The ‘why’ is not the whole story …’how’ can be just as vital!

The loss of traditional building skills has been rued for many years now, but the extent and impact of this loss was confirmed in a 2005 National Heritage Training Group (NHTG) report commissioned by the government. The report highlighted shortfalls in traditional skills and an ageing workforce in these areas throughout England. Subsequent investigations covering Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland show a similar trend across the UK.

Although we have 150 staff with traditional expertise including stonemasons, carpenters, joiners, plumbers, bricklayers and lime plasterers, this workforce is following the same worrying trend that the NHTG report highlighted.

Partnership to save skills - That’s why we’re involved in a partnership to make sure these valuable traditional skills don’t die out. We’re working with English Heritage, Cadw (the historic environment service of the Welsh Assembly Government), and Construction Skills on a bursary scheme that nurtures traditional building skills.

This bursary scheme is aimed at students part way through their training in a traditional building trade such as carpentry, joinery, stone masonry, painting and decorating, brickwork and plasterwork.

Vocational qualifications - We are able to set up valuable work placements for these students with the National Trust, one of the partner organisations, or with contractors that specialise in heritage work. The apprenticeship allows each learner to complete their vocational qualification whilst at the same time develop skills to be able to work on historic buildings.

Prior to this the National Trust Building Apprenticeship Scheme ran from 2010-2013 to help tackle the imminent skills shortage within our own teams of craftsmen.

Established in 1983 as a Charity, our aim is to advance the education of the general public in the history and development of hand tools and their use and of the people and trades that use them. But what does that actually mean?

This site is not just for collectors, or historians, but also the curious, with members worldwide. This covers any activity or craft where tools are used - book binding, leather work, sail making, boat building, cabinet making, printing, animal husbandry, metal working, wheelwrights, cider making, glove making, the list is endless, and how these implements have evolved over centuries.

This site is for researchers into social history but it is also for the young to explore something they picked up at the local car boot sale, or found in a skip, to encourage an interest and perhaps a craft.

This site is also for craftsmen and women to learn how different tools were used and to what effect, and for discussion, for mutual learning and exchange of information. There are social events and volunteering opportunities with like-minded and interested people and expert advice.

Timber Windows has developed the country’s finest network of specialist, local showrooms dedicated to the supply and correct installation of beautiful timber windows and doors.

We are passionate about the difference that real wood can make to your home; our suite of products has lead the market in the breadth of application, uniqueness of design, quality of construction and performance in use.

Installing well-made, well-specified timber windows and doors can really enhance the beauty and value of your home.

Please visit one of our specialist local showrooms, and we look forward to working with you on your exciting project!

The official voice of the UK timber trade, representing timber importers, agents and other suppliers and users of wood and wood products.

We are the voice of the UK timber industry, supporting and promoting our members’ interests. Our members constitute of timber importers, merchants, agents and manufacturers.

We have been supporting timber traders for over 125 years and have seen climate change become a defining feature for the government, regulators and customers. As well as supporting our members’ interest, we work to maintain and enhance timber’s sustainable reputation at a national, European and international level.

All members must operate under our strict Code of Conduct. We empower our members to lead the standard of #trustedtimber by completing our Responsible Purchasing Process (RPP) due diligence system.

TACS is for anyone interested in tiles and decorative ceramics related to buildings.

Tiles have a history stretching back more than one thousand years. In the 13th and 14th centuries Europe’s churches were paved with decorated tiles. At the same time buildings in the Arab world were adorned with richly coloured tiles. Holland was an important centre for tiles in the 17th and 18th centuries and in the 19th century Britain pioneered mass-produced tiles. The 20th century has seen both a decline and a revival in tile-making. Tiles are now much collected and studied. Tiles are all around us for everyone to enjoy. Ceramic tiles cover walls and floors, roofs and pavements, furniture and stoves, and can be seen in churches and mosques, pubs and shops, hospitals and homes. They are often combined with other forms of ceramics such as terracotta, faience and mosaic.

The Tiles and Architectural Ceramics Society (TACS) has served as Britain’s national society promoting the study and conservation of tiles and architectural ceramics since 1981. An international membership of individuals and institutions is drawn from the fields of tile museums, conservation, manufacturing (both industrial and craft), architecture, design, tile collecting and antiques.