Prince’s Foundation trainee wearing hard hat, safety glasses and ear defenders cutting a piece of wood — Prince’s Foundation trainee at work on the Main Mill building, 2017 © Historic England Archive, Steven Baker

Prince’s Foundation trainee at work on the Main Mill building, 2017 © Historic England Archive, Steven Baker

Heritage Skills at Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings

Caring for listed buildings, and the estimated 5.5 million traditional (pre-1919) buildings in England, requires particular skills and training. The conservation of Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings provides us with the opportunity to offer training and hands-on experience, using the site as a tool for learning.

See below for upcoming work placement opportunities

Two men in hard hats and high viz jackets repairing roof under scaffolding

Prince’s Foundation trainees learn new skills on the roof of the Main Mill © Historic England Archive, Steven Baker

What's been happening?

Between 2017 and 2020 we delivered a programme of heritage skills activities supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation. Work placements, site tours and training events were targeted at all levels from students to industry professionals. With help from a wide range of partners the programme delivered benefits for local, national and international learners. Our partners included the building contractor Croft Building and Conservation Ltd, the professional team involved with the project and Shropshire Council.

As part of the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership’s investment in the site, we are delivering a programme of work placements relating to the Flaxmill Maltings project. The placements will span project areas including construction, heritage management, public engagement and e-learning. Due to Covid-19 we have adapted the programme and are offering innovative online placements.

Image gallery

Please click on the gallery images to enlarge.

Some of our highlights

Work based experience for young learners

Students from Shrewsbury College, Telford College and further afield have gained work experience in carpentry, brickwork and roofing.
Extended work placement in bricklaying as part of Shrewsbury College Group’s T Level placement pilot scheme.

Supporting the attainment of qualifications

Prince's Foundation Building Craft Programme trainees gaining their Level 3 NVQ Diploma in Heritage Skills
30 participants achieved their Level 3 Award in Understanding Repair and Maintenance of Traditional Buildings, with tailored delivery for roofers and college construction lecturers
Gleeds construction consultancy trainees gaining work-based experience towards their BSc (Hons) in Quantity Surveying

An apprentice working with contractors Croft Building Conservation undertakes complex repairs to the brick work in the window reveals © Historic England Archive, Steven Baker

Attracting groups usually underrepresented in construction

Tour of the roof works to look at its progress for Women in Roofing
Historic England ethnic minority placement students visited the site as part of their internship at the Birmingham Office

The presentation and the tour were really amazing. The whole Flaxmill Maltings experience will stay with me for a long time and I will share this with my colleagues.

We took Women in Roofing behind the scenes with contractors Croft Building Conservation to see the work in progress on the Mill’s unusual roof. Photo courtesy of Livia Williams

Promoting understanding of Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings

Bespoke events for students from University of Leicester, University of Wolverhampton, University of Birmingham’s Ironbridge Institute, Birmingham City University and Nottingham Trent University
A hands-on session in traditional brick making for Shrewsbury College bricklaying students
A CPD event on Bat Mitigation in Traditional Buildings to understand the challenges of protecting wildlife during conservation projects
Experts from National Heritage Ironwork Group ran courses on identifying problems in historic ironwork, selecting appropriate repair methods and how to get the best results from the tendering process

The students said it was the best visit they have had this academic year.

Anthony Hatfield, Senior Lecturer in Building Surveying, University of Wolverhampton

Upcoming opportunities

No current opportunities.

If you would like to be added to our mailing list to hear about placements as they become available, please email [email protected] with the subject line ‘work placement mailing list’.

Heritage Construction Skills Advice and Training

Specific knowledge of historic buildings is needed not only for construction professionals but also for those who live in one of the millions of older properties in England. Explore our guidance on how to maintain and repair historic buildings.