C O N T E X T 7 6 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 2 7 estimated cost of the project is £8 million, but it is projected to be a major visitor attraction bringing over £1 million per year into the local economy. The project raises a number of issues – certainly one about conservation philosophy, and the desirability of reconstruction of a largely missing structure of which there are scheduled remains. It also raises questions about communities. There are of course different types of community involvement, and meeting the competing expectations and demands of geographically local as well as specialist/thematic communities will always prove problematic for a restoration project of this type. The Virtual Experience Company is dedicated to the creation of real-time virtual reality models of heritage sites and museum artefacts. Mike Gogan talked about how the use of virtual reality techniques enables people to explore and learn about a building or environment in a way that would otherwise be impossible. This could be a building that no longer exists, one that has been substantially altered, or one that has still to be developed. The visual results shown were impressive. The time and resource cost of this type of consultation/public involvement creates a mixed response, though. There were ‘wows’ from those who had no access to this type of technology and saw the incredible usefulness of it, and scepticism from others about its relevance to their own situations where low-tech is the norm. See p30 for more about these techniques. The main business of the afternoon concluded, there was time for a swift drink in the bar and dinner in the university restaurant before coaches whisked delegates to the heart of historic Coventry.We were the guests of the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Coventry at a reception in the Great Hall of the medieval Guildhall of St Mary. This amazing building, one of the finest guildhalls in the country, is a reminder of the size and importance of the medieval city. Its survival, scarred but intact beside the ruins of Coventry Cathedral, seems nothing short of miraculous. Plied with alcohol by the Lord Mayor, delegates were able to spend time exploring the building and its fine 15th century stained glass windows, and the Tournai tapestry, commissioned for the visit of HenryVIII in 1500 and still viewed in its original position beneath the window. George Demidowicz led a walking tour that took in, among other areas, the sites of the Phoenix Initiative, Coventry’s millennium project and the subject of his talk on the following afternoon. Other delegates explored a hostelry close by that had provoked some interest with its contemporary design. Friday 4 July: Motivation and inspiration (continued), IHBC Day School, sponsored by Ventrolla The Day School was in good hands with the chair for the day, IHBC President Malcolm Airs. Recently described as ‘an informed and neutral facilitator’, Malcolm is reader in conservation of the historic environment at the University of Oxford, and chaired the recent IHBC/IFA conference ‘Planning and the Historic Environment: agenda for the 21st Century’. He welcomed new delegates to the Day School and introduced our first speaker. Martyn Heighton is the NationalTrust board director for West England and Wales. He led the recent successful campaign to save Tyntesfield, the last surviving intact example of a Victorian house and estate. Martyn was director of leisure services for the City of Bristol, where he led the Harbourside Regeneration Team. Immediately before joining the National Trust he spent four years as chief executive of the Mary Rose Trust. The NationalTrust grew out of the grime of the urban industrial landscape at the end of the 19th century. In 2002 the trust is moving away from what has been seen as its particular niche in the heritage sector, and is tackling the challenging new agendas and policy directions that have been set out in the DCMS report A Force for Our Future.There are new agendas emphasising themes with which people will more easily connect, and ways of meeting the new emphasis on community-led conservation to create value and improve quality of life. Martyn outlined the following areas where he saw the National Trust as leading the way in realising the current agenda: tourism: looking at the impact of visitors to heritage sites such as Sutton Hoo, where a partnership with English Heritage, the NHMF and the British Museum has resulted in a new visitor centre at the site telling the story of the Saxon burial; Operation Neptune: looking after the maritime heritage, a long term successful engagement with conservation of the coast; Southall Workhouse: the trust is looking at different buildings, different approaches, and changing the way in which people view the NationalTrust and its conservation work in the built heritage; protection of the landscape, saving outstanding areas of the countryside and improving public access and interpretation; creating new partnerships, as in Birmingham, where the trust has moved into a very urban environment and is working with the city council to secure the future of the few remaining areas of back-to-back housing; and encouraging traditional farming practices, bringing back the animals, the landscape and the skills to the countryside and, most important, working with the local farmers. All these concerns are brought together in the purchase of Tyntesfield. It will be a test-bed for the way the trust connects with communities, and for working with partners such as the local authorities, the University of Bristol and Avon Wildlife Trust. All were involved in the launch of the appeal, and will share in the project. Tyntesfield is much more than a house: the context is the whole estate and the contents, including workshops and forges, as well as education and the craftsmanship of Crace and Gillow. Martyn’s reflections on the School theme appear on p20. IHBC Annual School 2002 IHBC Annual School 2002 IHBC Annual School 2002
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