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Heritage

  Conservation    

Excerpt from a planning application review: 

Historic Gardens, heritage assets, and cultural landscapes

We have a wealth of historic gardens and heritage landscapes, and our experience of these is enhanced through the eyes of the social, political and artistic influences that shaped their formation and have influenced their journey through time. My thesis for an MSc in Conservation of Historic Gardens and Cultural Landscapes at the University of Bath explored the influences of climate change on historic gardens, and how adaptation, essential as it is, needs to recognise and respect the layers of significance of a site.

 

Learn about Conservation of Historic Gardens - 4 part online video tutorial offered through Learning with Experts   

This course is CPD compliant with IHBC  

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Students on Learning with Experts courses come from all over the world, taking full advantage of the ability to study anywhere and at anytime. For each assignment, students choose a site that is of interest to themselves and write about it. In the virtual classroom other students get to learn about magnificent historic gardens through the eyes of their classmates. Conservation of heritage gardens and landscape is not about preventing change. It is about managing change within a framework of the obvious and subtle features that determine heritage significance. 

 

Learn about Garden History - a variety of courses is offered through the year with The Garden History Grapevine

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To keep up to date with current legislation and initiatives, I serve on the Friends of Sydney Gardens Committee and on the planning subcommittee for the Avon Gardens Trust.

 

"The significance of an historic garden is defined by its original design intention, its associations, and its planting choices, or a combination of these factors. Climate change impacts have the potential to detract from the heritage significance through damage or loss of essential features. The climate change adaptation response matrix developed in this report analyses the vulnerability of a site or feature through an assessment of its sensitivity to climate change and potential for adaptation."

"The significance of [the building], lies mainly in the context within [the registered estate]. The proposed amendments do not undermine the historic nature of the building beyond the impact of any previous alterations for residential use. There is no change of use, and the footprint of is not changed. The provision of reasonable accommodation provided by these alterations, is consistent with the [local] management plan in supporting sustainable rural development, while recognising the intrinsic heritage value of the wider landscape."

Excerpt from a review of substitution in conservation: The challenges of change and choice in conservation of historic gardens.

"A garden is a process of change. Gardens are influenced by style and fashion, though more by the desires, taste and means of the owner. Sizergh is no exception. As the fortunes and needs of the family have changed the garden has expanded and contracted in size and complexity. While the National Trust has an obligation to the nation to respect and retain historically important elements of the garden, it is in the unusually fortunate position of having the continuity of family involvement into an eighth century."

"Conservation is an active process of managing change to respectfully retain the significance of a site. Change and renewal should be constantly anticipated or provoked, and actively manipulated, managed and controlled. Management decisions within a conservation programme may introduce practices which differ from those which were historically part of the design, development and maintenance of a site. This review presents examples of actions and strategies which represent substitutions of original practice and materials, and discusses their position within the conservation ethic."

New initiatives

Sharing the intrigue and subtle interest as well as the obvious beauty of landscapes is the secret joy of my work.

I have two activities in development that achieve this goal. My capacity to perform in these is enhanced by TV Presenter training and preparation of a PTC as a BBC Academy Expert Women candidate .

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Television series in development

Three programmes are in development for a television series which describes the detective work that is done to travel back along the garden path of time and reveal the secrets lost through neglect of historic gardens. Restoration, recreation, conservation all rely on first finding out what was there, who was involved and why is it important. This fascinating, cross genre series has elements of Time Team, Who Do You Think You Are?, The Lost Gardens of Heligan and Grand Designs.

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Conservation and garden history courses

There is growing interest in understanding the strategies and processes behind the sensitive conservation of heritage assets. Part of this comes from an individual's personal curiosity and responsibility for caring for our cultural heritage, and part comes from the necessity for groups and organisations to take action in protecting our heritage. Short courses in garden conservation and garden history are offered to support people to prepare focused bids for funding, and deliver intelligent, effective planning and implementation. These courses are aligned to The Gardens Trust's conservation initiatives.

 

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