Heritage Now

30   HISTORIC BUILDINGS & PLACES THE YOUNG ONES As a teenager I loved bad architecture. I was a keen reader of internet forums where members would track new, shiny developments in London and post images of vast service cores with gravity-defying scaffolding and huge cranes. It was mostly about skyscrapers and, for me, the bigger the better −a scene quite alien to the ancient, limestone villages of North Yorkshire where I grew up. Perhaps going into conservation was an atonement of sorts for this early interest. I was fortunate to be able to study historic build- ing conservation at the University of York. It was a great course with a strong supportive commu- nity atmosphere which helped make me feel less of an imposter. The programme provided a good grounding in the theoretical framework behind conservation and most importantly it taught me why we value some things and not others and helped me question the prevailing power struc- tures and modes of thought in heritage, both historically and now. I was also able to pursue research that really interested me, for example for my dissertation I looked at the restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster. What an ac- ademic course allows you to do, that can slip away in the everyday business of working life, is to real- ly think through an issue with time and attention. The dissertation won the Gus Astley award which was a lovely surprise and not something I had ever expected. To supplement the course and build my experi- ence I took a voluntary role with the York Civic Trust as a caseworker. Critiquing applications alongside architects and academics with vast ex- perience was a particularly formative experience - the moment you missed something important they would let you know about it! This supportive atmosphere really helped build my confidence and shape my character. Entering into the sector as a conservation officer with only a one year course behind me did have its challenges. One of the most eye-opening aspects has been working alongside town planners and architects whose experience and skills teaches you an important lesson − that the practice of building conservation cannot exist in a silo, it only really works as part of a broad network. As pro- fessionals we can help facilitate conservation but the biggest impact almost always comes down to what the people who live in, care about, own, and use these buildings and places want. Sharing our conservation perspective with as many of these people as possible is key. The pandemic brought about other challeng- es. With the office gone not six months into my career I could no longer seek advice from nearby colleagues, nor overhear useful conver- sations that I could gather information from. Home-working was hard and without human interaction and site visits there were many times I felt disengaged. A small upside was that the lack of commuting gave me the time to broaden my reading and delve into the topics of architectural history, urban design, and current architectural practice in a way I never had before. Understand- ing the key problems with the built environment and the people it fails to serve has given me a much clearer perspective on the role conservation plays as part of this. My personal vocation for conservation stems from, as I am sure it does for many others, from my love for places and societies and not just the buildings, which can only ever contribute in part. I like old and new buildings in equal measure, and in terms of conservation, the new ones matter just as much as the old. Our built environment, and especially the historic aspect of this, contrib- utes so much to our various identities, practices, rituals, pleasures, domesticities, and politics that when we conserve buildings we are not just con- serving buildings. Conservation is at an exciting point. With the ‘RetroFirst’ campaign led by the Architects’ Jour- nal (a campaign to prioritise retrofit over demo- lition and rebuild) gaining some traction and the climate crisis response beginning to take a more central role in policy there is a chance for con- servation to break out of its traditional Victorian foundational notions of age and architectural significance. If we decide to conserve embodied carbon within buildings this gives us a chance to see the whole built environment as something which is precious. This means that a building, even if stripped off any notions of architectural or historic interest, can be worthy of conservation. Conservation so far has shown us this need not be a hindrance, but an opportunity. ——————— My personal vocation for conservation stems from, as I am sure it does for many others, my love for places and societies and not just the buildings, which can only ever contribute in part