Morwenna Slade, member of the CIOB Heritage Advisory Panel and founder and director of Hennacliff Consulting Ltd, discusses maintaining a balance between necessary retrofitting and maintaining a building’s history
On 23 April 2026, the CIOB brought together a wide range of professionals and practitioners for the Heritage that Works conference. This annual conservation conference continues to grow in importance and relevance as the built environment grapples with complex sustainability challenges and the pursuit of successful retrofit outcomes.
At the heart of this year’s discussions was the relevance of the skills and knowledge in the heritage sector to deliver positive outcomes and high-quality adaptation and regeneration of historic buildings, areas and the broader built environment.
In her opening address, the chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Building, Victoria Hills, shared her personal reflections on the significant change the area around Tower Bridge has undergone over the years she has worked there.
Highlighting the positive contributions that conservation and historic buildings have made to the broad spectrum of construction activities, her clear message was that, to achieve UK sustainability goals, we must value what we have and harness expertise and skills to avoid wasting buildings. To work in a broader community, responding to challenges and restoring, reviving, and renewing historic buildings.
Traditional buildings make up a significant proportion of the UK’s built environment. From listed Georgian townhouses to Victorian industrial sites and early 20th-century civic buildings, these structures are woven into the national identity. Solid walls, single glazing, natural ventilation, and traditional materials such as lime mortar all contribute to buildings that behave differently from their modern counterparts.
Structured around three core themes: Delivery, Skills, and Value, the conference offered more than a series of presentations. It set out a clear direction of travel for the sector, highlighting both the urgency of climate action and the nuanced, often difficult decisions required when working with historic assets.
The day opened with a focus on delivery; how heritage projects can move from ambition to successful execution.
Andy Beardsley, managing director at Terra Measurement, set the tone with a compelling argument that many of the sector’s persistent challenges stem from an often-overlooked issue: poor measurement. His presentation positioned 3D geospatial surveys not as a specialist service, but as essential project infrastructure.
“𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 – 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 – 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱.”
Drawing on live case studies from ecclesiastical and estate projects, Beardsley demonstrated how inaccurate or fragmented survey data can lead to rework, delays and cost overruns. Conversely, robust and coordinated measurement enables collaboration across disciplines and provides long-term value for asset management.
This theme of “getting the basics right” continued in Colin Bignell’s presentation on upgrading heritage windows. Using secondary glazing as a practical example, he explored the realities of introducing modern performance improvements into historic fabric.
Technical Sales Director, Selectaglaze, Colin Bignell emphasised the importance of early coordination, careful detailing, and a clear understanding of both conservation constraints and performance goals. His examples illustrated the delicate balance between improving thermal performance and maintaining architectural integrity. This is an example that extends to other retrofit technologies such as insulating traditional buildings, heat pumps, solar panels and solar shading.
A project-led perspective from Historic Royal Palaces considered these challenges and the expertise required to support project design and delivery. Lynda O’Sullivan, senior project manager at Kensington Palace, discussed the roof replacement on the Queen’s Range. Understanding its thermal performance and providing an overview of the options appraisal for insulation above the 1690’s barrel vaulted ceiling. This presentation explored the fine balance between moisture risk, impact on historic significance, and likely improvements in thermal performance. O’Sullivan concluded, “taking a whole building approach, there are other, more impactful, wins we can achieve.”
From the technical detail of delivery, the session shifted to a more community-focused case study at Temple Church in Bristol. Ed McGregor, volunteer and engagement manager at English Heritage and Tim Senior, director at Supersum, outlined an innovative engagement model. Partnering with the Redcliffe Business Improvement District (BID) to use small-scale “seedcorn” funding to activate Temple Church; a ruined church with Templar roots in the centre of Bristol. The initiative has supported a diverse range of uses, from theatre performances to outdoor gym spaces and has demonstrated how heritage can be reimagined as a flexible, living asset.
The delivery session concluded with a panel discussion that reinforced a key message: successful projects in the historic environment rely on early collaboration, accurate information, and a willingness to adapt conventional approaches. The panel agreed that harnessing skills and expertise across a broad range of specialisms is vital to delivering successful project outcomes.
Retrofit reality: Technology meets heritage
The topic of sustainability threaded through the delivery discussions, and a point was revisited throughout the day: the need to integrate modern technologies into historic buildings. Historic buildings, by their nature, have changed through time; they are robust, adaptable and diverse.
The UK’s historic built environment stands as a testament to sustainable, often innovative, and resilient adaptation through the ages. Many of the presentations and conversations during the conference demonstrated that historic buildings and sites also offer a unique resource of knowledge regarding longevity of materials and fabric performance in changing climates, as well as sufficiency, circularity, and reduced consumption.
Heat pumps and solar panels are central to the UK’s decarbonisation strategy, yet their application in heritage contexts remains a subject of contention and misunderstanding. Myths such as ‘heat pumps don’t work in old buildings’ and ‘you can’t put solar on listed buildings’ regularly hit the headlines despite the myriad successful examples.
Maintenance was a key topic touched on by all the speakers from different perspectives and proved to be a gold thread of the day. That solar generation can be successfully installed on historic and listed buildings has been proven, as has the installation and successful performance of heat pumps in traditional buildings. But as we see more installations, we also need to consider the implications for asset management, maintenance, and fire safety. These broader, longer-term considerations go beyond the visual and aesthetic impact and are balanced against significance, and should be addressed to ensure a truly successful and sustainable approach that supports the continued use and care of our heritage.
Innovations such as solar slats and installations that are sensitive to their setting are helping drive change, but trade-offs remain, often economic rather than aesthetic. In many cases, project teams are not choosing between optimising performance and preserving appearance, but rather how to deliver positive change in a challenging economic environment where the skills shortage is an everyday reality.
Skills: A sector under pressure
If delivery is about utilising knowledge and expertise, the conference made clear that skills are the foundation on which everything depends.
The late morning session focused on the growing skills gap in heritage construction and conservation. This is a challenge compounded by an ageing workforce and increasing demand for retrofitting, which requires a different, more inclusive approach.
Kasia Howard introduced The King’s Foundation’s Building Crafts and Conservation programme, which aims to support the next generation of craftspeople. Her presentations demonstrated how keeping traditional skills alive is essential not just for conservation and craft, but also for retrofitting and the future of our built environment.
Adrian Attwood, director of DBR, expanded on this by examining the role of SMEs in delivering heritage training. These firms are often the custodians of traditional knowledge, providing apprenticeships and hands-on learning opportunities. However, they face significant barriers, including funding complexity and a challenging environment around funding apprentices and training. He outlined a model in which apprentices start by learning to maintain buildings before moving on to specialist crafts such as stone masonry. No matter how old the building is, maintenance is the first step towards resilience to the rapidly changing climate, and is a great place for those entering construction to start.
Meriel O’Dowd, conservation project manager for the Churches Conservation Trust, presented the case study of All Saints, Langport, highlighting how skills development needs to be embedded within projects themselves. This project, responding to the need to conserve the extraordinarily beautiful, coffered timber ceiling with intricately carved decorative timber leaves, also addressed shortages in specialist joinery and timber conservation. Throughout this presentation, the importance of representation was emphasised, and the efforts made to ensure people were not excluded from the conversation.
“In order to know that you, a school-aged child, can be a stonemason or plasterer, you have to see someone like you up there. Seeing people who share their background, gender, or race in diverse careers is vital for children to build self-confidence, break down stereotypes, and broaden their aspirations. It enables them to visualise themselves in roles, fosters higher academic performance, and provides relatable role models, showing that their goals are achievable regardless of their background.”
This theme of visibility and inclusion was further explored in the presentation by Deborah Pocock, CEO of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QUEST), and her conversation with early-career stonemason Charlotte Holman. Holman offered a personal perspective on entering the sector and the challenges she faced when considering a more practical career path. Her initial ideas of becoming a ceramicist or sculptor eventually led her to pursue a three-year stonemasonry course at Bath College and a Cathedrals’ Workshop Fellowship, which developed her stone-carving skills and knowledge while based at Wells Cathedral.
The session’s panel discussion highlighted the need for systemic change, greater investment in training, clearer pathways into the sector, and stronger support for SMEs and charities alike to offer opportunities to learn crafts and to meet the demand to value and use existing buildings.
Value: Rethinking what heritage means
The afternoon session turned to value, challenging traditional assumptions and championing a shift towards relevance, value, and wider engagement. Ensuring that conservation is not only about protecting the past, but about enabling people across the sector to deliver better, smarter, and more inclusive heritage outcomes.
My own presentation opened with a focus on climate resilience, arguing that adaptation and resilience are now an urgent priority for all buildings. It demonstrated how detailed site analysis, materials understanding, and climate modelling can inform sensitive interventions that both protect and enhance historic assets. It also highlighted that a siloed focus on energy retrofit is resulting in maladaptation of buildings, increasing vulnerability and decreasing value. With 1 in 4 buildings in the UK now at risk of flooding, the additional considerations are not just new technologies for existing buildings, but how to retrofit buildings to be recoverable.
Jo Lugg of the National Trust expanded the discussion, outlining how the organisation is redefining value through its “People and Nature Thriving Strategy.”
“Our role is to ensure these places remain relevant,” she explained, pointing to projects such as Castlefield Viaduct and Clandon House as examples of heritage delivering public benefit and social value.
Steven Cole of the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) refocused the debate to consider homes and community centres that some people may not consider as heritage. Cole gave examples of his work that questioned whether focus on designated assets risks overlooking the vast stock of everyday buildings that represent the greatest opportunity and challenge for retrofit.
Sarah Dowd concluded the session with a case study from the Historic Chapels Trust, demonstrating how a shift in focus, from fabric to people and future use, can unlock long-term value.
The final panel discussion rounded off the day with a call to arms to address the needs of future generations. UK built heritage offers a unique record, tales of resilience, old and new, that is of fundamental value at this time of significant change.
A way forward
Across all sessions, a central message emerged: it is possible to balance historic significance and deliver practical, sustainable outcomes. A recurring concern throughout the conference, however, was the shortage of skills in heritage retrofit. Working with historic and traditional buildings requires a deep understanding of traditional materials and construction methods, combined with knowledge of modern systems and sustainability principles. This hybrid expertise is in short supply.
Heritage buildings are among the UK’s most valued assets, and for those who work with them, these buildings provide a new challenge every day. As this conference demonstrated, the path forward is neither simple nor uniform. Retrofitting the past for a sustainable future demands careful judgement, technical expertise, and a willingness to embrace complexity.
Done well, it offers more than compliance with net-zero targets. It provides an opportunity to ensure that heritage buildings are not just preserved but remain relevant, actively contributing to the environmental, social, and economic life of the communities they serve.
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