Building Next Generation Traditional Skills

10/08/2026

A group of seven people are gathered together in front of red signage for a coal sellers. Text reads John Kelly limited. They are smiling at the camera

Credit: CITB NI / Peter O'Hara Photography.

Addressing a skills gap and building a strong supply chain of skilled craftspeople to repair and maintain heritage buildings is the aim of this four-year project.

The Shared Heritage Futures: An All-Ireland Skills Project brings together organisations from across the UK and Ireland to work towards a positive shared future for heritage skills.

Each year, the training programme is welcoming eight professionals to develop their traditional building skills through industry placements, expert mentoring and specialist conservation training weeks. They will also gain an accredited Level 3 qualification in Heritage Skills (Construction).

Participants in the first cohort include a blacksmith, furniture restorer, mould maker, sign painter, heritage painter and decorator, stonemason, stained-glass artisan and thatcher.

Two people standing in a carpentry workshop smiling and looking at the camera. Behind them are tools and wooden objects. — Carpentry and furniture restoration participant Ellen West is pictured in the carpentry workshop at the Ulster Folk Museum with Stella Byrne, Director, Northern Ireland, The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Credit: CITB NI / Peter O'Hara Photography.

A report on heritage skills in Northern Ireland by the Construction Industry Training Board NI who received the funding, revealed that 94% of heritage contractors do not have any staff in formal training. In addition to formal training, the project is offering workshops for schools and communities in Northern Ireland and extra support for craftspeople starting their careers.

Stella Byrne, Director, Northern Ireland at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Traditional skills are integral to the future of our heritage and this project is ensuring that these skills and knowledge are not lost.”