MSc in Historic Conservation – Oxford walkabout 2026

On the last teaching day of semester, Historic Conservation MSc students went on walkabout in
central Oxford, looking at a variety of recent (and not so recent) repair and renovation projects
across the city and University.

We began at 35 Holywell Street, an early-17th century building belonging to Wadham College, where

the application of an impermeable cement render during the 1960s has caused severe decay to the
original timber frame. Chris Cox, Wadham’s Estates Manager, took us up on the scaffolding to
explain the sustainability-focused renovation currently being undertaken.

Outside the Holywell Music Room, Oxford’s historic chamber music venue. Built in 1742 and now
also owned by Wadham, the Music Room underwent a major conservation programme in 2009.

Harris Manchester College, a venerable Nonconformist institution that migrated from Manchester to
Oxford during the 1890s. The chapel, designed by Manchester architect Thomas Worthington,
features gorgeous stained glass made by Morris & Co. to designs by Edward Burne-Jones. A recent
renovation by Jessop & Cook Architects installed new lighting and audio-visual systems and
improved access provisions while respecting the restrained sumptuousness of the original Arts and
Crafts interior. The project team, who won a coveted Oxford Preservation Trust Award in 2025,
included Brookes MSc alumna Aline Bronkhorst.

One of the carved bench-ends, which feature a delightful cornucopia of birds, beasts, flowers and

foliage.

In the Museum of Natural History, built from 1855 to designs by Thomas Dean and Benjamin
Woodward. The interior, glazed and iron-framed in the manner of a particularly lavish Victorian
railway station, underwent a comprehensive 2014 programme of cleaning and repair overseen by
architects Purcell and conservation studio Eura. The columns were laser-cleaned, with the wrought-
iron ornament cleaned by hand and the glass-tiled roof relaid. (The latter had afterwards to be fitted
with a protective film, as the newly-cleaned glazing admitted too much light and made internal
temperatures intolerably high).

Keble College, once viewed by an eminent art historian as ‘the ugliest building in the world’, is now
recognised as Oxford’s supreme masterpiece of Gothic Revival architecture. The chapel, designed
(like the rest of the college) by William Butterfield and opened in 1876, is modelled on the 13th -
century Basilica of St Francis at Assisi in Italy, and epitomises the Anglo-Catholic spirituality and
Romantic medievalism of its time. Butterfield’s rich palette of decorative materials includes mosaic,
stained glass, encaustic tile, coloured inlay, brass, wrought iron, alabaster and polished marble as
well as his characteristic brick polychromy.

Taking a breather in the main quadrangle.

Our final visit was to Trinity College, where the 17th -century Hall and Senior Common Room recently
underwent a redecoration and adaptation scheme that garnered another of last year’s OPT awards.
Project architect Andrew Dawson showed us around the site.

Our thanks go to everyone who helped to make our site visits possible, both yesterday and
throughout the year. This course could not exist without the generosity of conservation
professionals who give their time to help educate the next generation of practitioners. You can find out more about the MSc Historic Conservation here.

MSc in Historic Conservation – visit to Sutton Courtenay Abbey

On 15^th April, a group of Historic Conservation MSc students paid a visit to Sutton Courtenay Abbey, a Grade I-listed medieval courtyard house that once served as the rectory to this prosperous Thames-side village, and is now home to a spiritual retreat centre. Built in stages between the 13^th and the 16^th century, the house – never in fact a monastic institution, though it was originally owned by the great Benedictine abbey a couple of miles upstream at Abingdon – shows evidence of an extremely complex construction history, the details of which are still a matter of scholarly debate.

What is not in doubt is the parlous state of the structure today. As Dr Kathryn Davies, architectural historian and conservation adviser, explained to us on site, with no major conservation work carried out during the last quarter-century, large sections of the original timber frame have decayed almost to the point of failure. Extensive structural interventions are now required if the building is to be saved, but these are far beyond the means of the small charity that operates the retreat centre. Even if external funding can be found, it is not clear that the works can be managed in such a way as to allow the centre to continue operating in the meantime; but without the associated revenue stream, there will be no resources to maintain the building once it has been restored. Just the kind of ‘wicked problem’ for aspiring conservation experts to get their teeth into…

The main west front of the house, showing the classic medieval hall-and-cross-wings plan: the stone-built great hall of the 1330s in the centre, flanked by a service wing on the right and a taller (and slightly earlier) parlour range to the left

A window in the south range, showing the effects of advanced timber decay

The central courtyard, with the timber-framed entrance range to the right

The 14th-century Great Hall with its immense oak cruck-trusses. Used by retreatants during the week, it is currently open to the public as a café at weekends

Gothic tracey jostles with paperbacks and armchairs in the library, originally the solar or upper residential chamber of the medieval house

Those who could stay for an extra half-hour took an architectural stroll through the village, which is richly endowed with fine buildings dating from the 12th through to the 20th century

Thanks to David Garrard for the report and photos. Tom find out more about the MSc Historic Conservation at Oxford Brookes, click here.

 

MSc in Historic Conservation – Lime Day 2026

An annual highlight of the Oxford Brookes MSc Historic Conservation is ‘Lime Day’, where students undertake an extended practical skills workshop with building crafts specialists Owlsworth. The use of lime – that is, of limestone-based mortars, plasters and renders – was at the heart of building construction until the 20th century, and its replacement by hard, impermeable modern cement has done untold harm to historic buildings. During the workshop students gain experience of mixing and applying traditional building limes, as well as of working with other historic materials such as stone and timber. These skills take years to perfect, of course; but even a day’s experience, guided by seasoned practitioners, yields a better appreciation of the craft than any lecture could achieve. It’s also good, messy fun. 

Traditional mortars and plasters are made using quicklime, a highly reactive compound produced by burning limestone in a kiln; here the quicklime is being slaked with water to produce a basic lime putty, to which aggregates or fibres can then be added.

An alternative technique involves hot mixing, where mortar is produced by directly combining quicklime with wet sand.

Students also look at timber construction, including the varieties of structural timber and the range of methods for converting a tree-trunk into a set of building components.

Walling panels in timber-framed buildings were formed of wattle and daub, comprising a thick layer of fibre-rich mud applied over a woven lattice of hazel strips. Here, the daub is being mixed by adding straw to wet clay to increase cohesiveness.

Applying the daub

Once it has dried, the daub must be weatherproofed with a thin layer of lime-based render

External render can also be applied in the form of harling, a wet mix of lime and gravel that is flung against the wall

Finally, students try their hand at stone carving – here by trying to replicate the complex moulding profiles of a window mullion

Thanks to David Garrard for the report and the photos. To find out more about the MSc Historic Conservation, look here.

MSc Historic Conservation: IHBC Gus Astley Student Award 2025

Fieldwork at the 11th century Castello di Cucagna, north-east Italy - Jack Parker joined participants seen here on the first of a series of hand-hewn sweet chestnut frames for the Charpentier sans Frontières rendez-vous project in September 2024

Here at Oxford Brookes, we are delighted to report that Jack Parker, a student on the MSc Historic Conservation has been awarded the IHBC Gus Astley Student Award 2025 for his Dissertation 'Squaring the Circle: What is the role of Hewing in UK Historic Conservation'. Thanks to Jack for allowing us to use some of his images and to IHBC for the following report (see the full report here)...

The winner of the IHBC Gus Astley Student Awards for 2025 has been selected by guest judge, IHBC’s Vice President Torsten Haak, as Jack Parker, (Oxford Brookes) for work on ‘Hewing’, while the IHBC’s Booth-Bird award winner is Andrew Pettifor (Birmingham City University), as both secure places at our 2026 Newcastle School alongside cash prizes.

Torsten Haak said of the process that: ‘It was an honour to be invited to judge this year’s awards.’

‘Given my long-standing involvement in heritage, I was eager to see how fresh ideas, collaboration, and purpose are shaping the sector’s future. As anticipated, I was delighted to be inspired by the innovation and integrity shown in this year’s entries.’

Jack Parker of Oxford Brookes University and the University of Oxford Department for Continuing Education (Historic Conservation MSc) has taken the top award with a prize of £500 for his Capstone Project, ‘SQUARING THE CIRCLE: What is the Role of Hewing in UK Historic Conservation?’.

Torsten said of Jack’s work: ‘This was an outstanding and highly engaging piece of work (including author’s own explanatory drawings). Hewing was a technique I had not previously encountered in the UK context, and the dissertation offered a clear, well-structured, and convincing exploration of its relevance. The contemporary significance of the topic is evident, particularly in light of recent high-profile conservation projects in France, such as the restoration of Notre-Dame.

Jack’s supervisor on the project, Dr, Karl Kropf, said: ‘It was a pleasure and privilege to work with Jack. His energy and enthusiasm were central to bringing together his direct, hands-on skills and experience and his intellectual curiosity to produce such an outstanding project . We’re particularly pleased that Jack took full advantage of the wider remit for research opened up by the recently introduced Capstone Project and for his efforts to be recognised by the judges and IHBC’.

Jack said: ‘I am delighted to receive the Gus Astley Student Award. My research explores how hewing, as a traditional method of timber conversion, can contribute to more sustainable and informed approaches to contemporary historic building conservation practice. It is heartening to see that craft-based research, focusing on traditional skills in relation to current challenges around sustainability, material understanding, and heritage skills transmission, is valued by the conservation sector. I am very grateful to the IHBC, and the award is a real encouragement at an early stage in my career.’

For more information on the MSc Historic Conservation, take a look here.

MSc in Historic Conservation – Brick Day 2026

On a misty March morning, students on the MSc Historic Conservation headed into the Chiltern
Hills for a day of practical activities devoted to the humble brick. With their rich clay deposits and dense woodlands producing a ready supply of firing timber, the Chilterns once supported dozens of small brickworks. HG Matthews of Bellingdon, near Chesham, is the only one of these still operating, still producing the area’s distinctive reddish-brown handmade bricks after more than a hundred years. Charlie, our guide for the morning, took us through the production process from beginning to end.

Clay from Matthews’ own quarry is left out over the winter to be broken up by frost action...

It is then put through a pug mill to break up the remaining lumps,
before being mixed with sand and other additives in preparation for moulding

The clay mixture is thrown into moulds, 
which are emptied out to produce unfired mud bricks

The bricks are then dried, first at air temperature
and then in ovens

The dried bricks are stacked in kilns (left) and gradually fired at temperatures reaching over 1000°C -
this partially vitrifies the mineral content, turning soft clay into hardened ceramic

Some bricks are given an enamel coating and re-fired,
producing a variety of coloured glazes

Next stop: the Chiltern Open Air Museum in Chalfont St Giles. During its 50-year history, COAM has rescued some 37 vernacular buildings from across the region, carefully dismantling structures otherwise facing demolition and carefully reconstructing them on the Chalfont site using traditional craft methods. Colin, the mason in charge of the museum’s running repair programme, showed us round, while Gordon, retired builder and current volunteer, helped us try our hand at moulding our own bricks.

Haddenham Cottage, a 19th century house built from witchert -
a distinctive method of earth construction using decayed limestone, clay
and straw, found only in a handful of villages in the Vale of Aylesbury

This 1820s toll house stood alongside the A40 in High Wycombe
until being destroyed in a lorry collision in 1972. Problems with how it was
rebuilt at COAM during the 1980s means that it is now undergoing
a further programme of reconstruction

Making bricks - which it turns out is more difficult than the guys 
at Matthews make it look...

Chiltern brick in its natural environment at the Allnut and Baker Almshouses 
in Goring Heath

Thanks to David Garrard for the report and photos - for more information about the MSc Historic Conservation, take a look here.

MSc Historic Conservation: visit to Worcester College 2026

During February 2026, students on the MSc in Historic Conservation visited Worcester College Oxford, to look at the college’s extraordinary collection of 16th, 17th and 18th century architectural drawings - courtesy of Worcester’s librarian, Mark Bainbridge - as well as its equally remarkable collection of medieval, Georgian and modern buildings.

In the drawings room, with librarian Mark Bainbridge showing us some of George Clarke and Nicholas Hawksmoor's designs for the college library

The main quadrangle, with the medieval buildings of Gloucester College (Worcester's predecessor) on the right, and the 1720s Clarke/Hawksmoor library on the left

The college gardens, some of the largest in Oxford and a Registered historic landscape in their own right

The Sainsbury Building, an intriguing Postmodern addition of 1983 by Richard MacCormac

And the final photo showing the chapel, a 1780s building by James Wyatt rendered almost unrecognisable by a comprehensive High Victorian makeover of 1863 designed by William Burges.

Thanks to the staff and students for the report and photos. To find out more about the MSc Historic Conservation take a look at the web page here.

MSc Historic Conservation: field trip to ex-RAF Bicester

Oxford Brookes Historic Conservation MSc students visit ex-RAF Bicester, England’s best-preserved WWII-era airfield. Originally established in 1916, the site was laid out in its present form from 1925 onwards as part of Sir Hugh Trenchard’s Home Defence Expansion Scheme. The Domestic Site, a campus-like cluster of accommodation, training and workshop blocks arranged in trident formation amid lawns and trees, gives access to the Technical Site with its vast hangars - built to accommodate heavy bombers of up to 100ft wingspan - and the Flying Field beyond. The site is now a Conservation Area containing numerous Listed Buildings and Scheduled Monuments; for the last decade it has been home to automotive and aviation business centre Bicester Motion, which has sensitively converted the existing buildings while exploring options for further development.

Our guide for the afternoon was Oxford-based heritage consultant Nicholas Worlledge of Worlledge Associates, who has provided specialist conservation and planning advice throughout the process.

Thanks to David Garrard for the report. And for more information on the MSc Historic Conservation at Oxford Brookes click here.