Heritage crafts get £7m lifeline

Reed-cutting is among the apprenticeships which will be offered

A total of £7 million in training bursaries will aim to breathe new life into the UK's dying traditional skills.

The Heritage Lottery Fund money will be used for apprenticeships in skills such as reed-cutting, paper conservation, topiary and millwrighting.

The Fund said such skills "were in danger of dying out" and the money aims to address the shortage of specialists.

There are now less than 40,000 people with skills to help maintain the UK's fragile heritage.

Essential skills

Sharon Goddard, Heritage Lottery Fund Advisor for Education, said: "There is an urgent need for an initiative like this."

Topiary skills will be passed on by master craftspeople

She said around 6,590 additional skilled craftspeople were needed to meet shortages for the UK's historic buildings alone.

"Our Training Bursary Scheme is designed to lead the fight to keep these essential skills alive by expanding the pool of skilled people and laying the foundations for more heritage training schemes," she said.

The traditional-style apprenticeships will give master craftspeople a chance to pass on their knowledge.

The scheme is designed to enable heritage organisations to develop training programmes, work-based learning and the training of existing staff.

The skills will be offered by the Fund working within 10 different partnerships.