If you would like to write to your MP to ask why the UK Government is not signed up to the 2003 UNESCO Convention on Intangible Cultural Heritage, and to petition them to support heritage crafts, you can do so via the WriteToThem website.

Just put your postcode into the envelope on the right-hand side of this page, to find contact details for your local MP, and get the chance to write to them online.

We haven't included a model letter for you to cut-and-paste because this impersonal type of correspondance often ends up being ignored. Instead, we would encourage you to use your own words, and if possible, examples of your own experiences and from your own constituency.

Points you may wish to raise might include:

• crafts are an important part of our shared heritage;
• heritage crafts are in crisis, and many are in danger of being lost within the next decade;
• heritage crafts contribute towards local distinctiveness and community cohesion;
• the UK is far behind many other nations in the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, of which traditional crafts are an important part;
• to find out more, contact the Heritage Crafts Association via its website at www.heritagecrafts.org.uk.