🎙️ You can also access the full Audio version of this Podcast by searching for 'Heritage Buildings Podcast' on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, PocketCasts, and your favourite podcast apps.

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Welcome to another episode of the Heritage Buildings Podcast.

Host Vincent Reed speaks with Libby Watts, founder of Liberty Rose Architects, 2021 Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) Scholar and 2023 The King's Foundation 35 Under 35 recipient.

Libby shares her journey from commercial architecture into listed building and church conservation, and how the SPAB Scholarship reshaped her approach to heritage practice.

Topics covered include:

• What the SPAB Scholarship really involves – hands-on craft training across the UK

• Moving from new-build offices to historic and listed buildings

• Starting a conservation practice during COVID

• Working closely with craftspeople on traditional materials like lime, lead, and timber

• How to structure fees for heritage projects

• Winning work through word of mouth, especially church networks

• Documenting historic details like lead roof graffiti

• The King’s Foundation 35 Under 35 experience

• Widening access to conservation and supporting young people into the trades

• Advice for getting into conservation architecture

Perfect for conservation architects, heritage professionals, church architects, craftspeople, and anyone passionate about traditional building skills and historic building preservation.

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Below is a more detailed breakdown of the video with relevant timestamps

Click the time on the left to jump straight to that section

00:00 Welcome and Guest Introduction

01:02 Finding Conservation Architecture

03:07 COVID Pivot and Starting a Practice

06:03 SPAB Scholarship Application

07:27 Scholarship Life on the Road

13:08 Plunkett Section: English Country Houses

16:11 Post-Scholarship Practice Philosophy

19:21 Learning from Craftspeople and Site Culture

25:04 Running the Business and Fee Structures

33:11 Winning Work Through Word of Mouth

34:47 The King’s Foundation 35 Under 35

39:40 Bringing New Talent into Conservation

41:52 Heritage for Everyone

42:00 Launching Access Courses

45:41 Teaching and Mentoring

47:30 Women in Conservation

56:34 Church Conservation Project Highlights

01:01:30 Managing People and Project Pressures

01:05:09 Boundaries and Saying No to Clients

01:08:04 Future Practice Direction

01:11:41 How to Get Into Conservation

01:16:20 Social Media and Wrap Up

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Connect with Liberty Watts and learn more:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/liberty-rose-architects/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liberty_rose_architects/

Email: libby@libertyrosearchitects.co.uk

Website: www.libertyrosearchitects.co.uk

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Learn more about the Heritage Buildings Association:

https://heritagebuildingsassociation.com

Join the conversation:

https://heritagebuildings.forum/share/dDYOnkLWJAkaA5xE?utm_source=manual

#LibertyRoseArchitects #Conservation #Architecture

🎙️ You can also access the full Audio version of this Podcast by searching for 'Heritage Buildings Podcast' on - Apple, Spotify, Amazon, PocketCasts, and any of your other favourite podcasting apps!

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Welcome to another episode of the Heritage Buildings Podcast.

In this episode, Vincent Reed speaks with Karl Magnus-Melin, historic carpenter and craft researcher trained in archaeology at Lund University. The discussion centres on the reconstruction of a 14th-century Swedish log timber church, rebuilt between 2007 and 2021 as a national heritage knowledge project in collaboration with the Craft Laboratory at the University of Gothenburg.

They explore medieval timber construction, roof design research, experimental archaeology, traditional axe work, hand-split boards, tool mark analysis, timber species selection, moisture content, and how rebuilding lost techniques strengthens conservation practice and historic building knowledge.

Topics covered include:

1. Medieval timber construction and historic carpentry techniques
2. Reconstructing a 14th-century Scandinavian log church
3. Experimental archaeology and craft-based research methods
4. Traditional axe work, tool marks, and timber splitting by hand
5. Dendrochronology, tree-ring dating, and timber provenance analysis
6. Roof construction research and medieval geometry
7. Apotropaic marks, taper burn marks, and ritual protection symbols in historic buildings
8. Driftwood construction in the Faroe Islands and Nordic timber trade
9. Craft education, heritage skills shortages, and conservation funding challenges

This episode is essential viewing for conservation architects, heritage consultants, dendrochronologists, archaeologists, historic carpenters, timber framers, building historians, and anyone passionate about medieval construction techniques and experimental craft research.

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Below is a more detailed breakdown of the video with relevant timestamps

Click the time on the left to jump straight to that section

00:00 Welcome & Introducing Craft Researcher Karl Magnus-Melin

01:41 Family Roots: Grandfathers, Churches, and Early Curiosity

03:19 Archaeology Meets Carpentry: Learning by Doing, Not Just Digging

07:42 Burned Medieval Log Church Reconstruction Begins

12:35 Documentation Gaps: Roof, Attic & Research Challenges

17:48 Defining Roles: Leading Medieval Roof Construction Research

22:04 Building as a Knowledge Project for Swedish Heritage

26:32 Splitting Timber by Hand: Species, Seasoning & Tool Marks

35:56 Axe Work, Fitness & the Physical Reality of Medieval Craft

42:57 Rebuilding Lost Traditions: Lessons & Long-Term Impact

45:52 Funding Frustrations vs. Slow Restoration Wins

46:35 Turkey 2017: Inside a 700 BC Timber Tomb

49:39 Ancient Construction Knowledge Across Regions

51:41 Hidden Attics, Soot Lines & Craft...

🎙️ You can also access the full Audio version of this Podcast by searching for 'Heritage Buildings Podcast' on - Apple, Spotify, Amazon, PocketCasts, and any of your other favourite podcasting apps!

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Welcome to another episode of the Heritage Buildings Podcast!

In this episode, host Vincent Reed speaks with Faye Davies, a RIBA-registered specialist conservation architect at Burrell Foley Fisher Architects, a London practice with over 40 years of experience in historic building conservation. Faye shares her journey into heritage architecture and her work adapting at-risk and listed buildings for modern, sustainable use.

The discussion explores creative conservation, including how complex historic sites like medieval guild halls and roundhouses are unlocked through heritage statements, client education, and practical problem-solving. Faye also reflects on major projects including York Guild Hall and Birmingham Roundhouse, alongside wider challenges in the sector such as training, sustainability, and unqualified contractors.

Topics covered include:

1. RIBA conservation architecture and career pathways in historic building preservation
2. Creative conservation strategies for adapting at-risk heritage buildings
3. Protecting and reusing listed buildings while meeting modern sustainability standards
4. Real-world conservation case studies: York Guild Hall restoration and Birmingham Roundhouse conservation
5. Writing heritage statements and navigating planning, archaeology, and budgets
6. Common challenges in the heritage sector, including unqualified contractors and skills shortages
7. Sustainable conservation approaches for medieval, Tudor, and 20th-century buildings
8. Professional advice for conservation architects, heritage consultants, and historic property owners

This episode is essential viewing for heritage professionals, conservation architects, RIBA members, historic building owners, planners, and anyone passionate about preserving UK heritage buildings through sustainable and creative conservation.

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Below is a more detailed breakdown of the video with relevant timestamps

Click the time on the left to jump straight to that section

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome

01:30 Faye's Path to Architecture

04:15 Falling into Historic Buildings

07:00 Covent Garden Slum Stories

09:45 RIBA Conservation Specialist Training

14:20 Wide Portfolio: Tudor to 20th Century

18:30 Repurposing At-Risk Buildings

22:00 Sustainability in Conservation

25:15 Practice Overview (43 Years, Nationwide)

29:00 Heritage Statements & Industry Challenges

35:45 Client Battles and Mediation

41:00 York Guild Hall Project Deep Dive

50:30 Budgets, Archaeology, and Wins

56:15 Winning Tenders: Enthusiasm & Vision

1:02:00...