A voice for craft
The national charity for heritage craft skills
Supporting craft heritage
We are the national charity set up to celebrate, support and safeguard traditional craft skills, and to facilitate a national conversation about their importance to everyone now and in the future.
We are passionate about ensuring that everyone has access to craft skills that have developed over generations, and which we believe will be vital in helping us tackle the challenges of the future – and to be able to enjoy making as part of a fulfilled life.
Our Patron is His Majesty King Charles III.
Latest stories
National Apprenticeship Week – highlighting our Apprentice-ship+ recipients
Sally Pointer in Conversation
Seven more grants to help save endangered crafts
Featured makers
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Heritage Crafts was set up just fifteen years ago. Since then it has gone from strength to strength, advocating at the highest levels for crafts, publishing the Red List of Endangered Crafts, and distributing 95 grants through the Endangered Crafts Fund. We have awarded 131 training bursaries, established the Heritage Crafts Awards and shone a spotlight on our world-renowned makers through 33 National Honours successes.
Many more people are now aware of traditional crafts and the objects produced by those who carry in their hands, heads, and also hearts the skills and techniques that have been passed down through the generations.
To continue this work we need your support. Please consider making a donation, however big or small, to help ensure that heritage craft skills in the UK are given the opportunity to thrive.
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#matchMAKER opportunity!
Horsehair weaving assistant
Location: Somerset
John Boyd Textiles was established in Castle Cary in 1837 and still weaves horsehair fabrics using the original looms from 1870. Their fabrics are woven to a very high quality standard and are exported around the world to high end designers, architects and furniture restorers. They are currently seeking a weaver/production assistant to join their team.
This is a varied role which will involve mainly weaving, dyeing and also other production roles such as warping, threading up looms, picking hair, sampling and dispatch. The ideal candidate will have a meticulous eye for detail and a willingness to learn. Full training will be provided.
Find out how to apply at https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/matchmaker
#matchMAKER is the online platform for work-based training and entry-level employment opportunities hosted by @heritagecrafts and supported by @soanebritain.
This National Apprenticeship Week, we are highlighting the two recipients of our Apprenticeship+ project, launched last year in partnership with the @hugoburgefoundation.
The scheme supplements two pilot apprenticeships with a financial contribution to the apprentices’ salaries and a grant to help compensate the employers for the reduction in their earnings during the training period. These costs are often prohibitive for sole traders and micro-businesses, resulting in a low uptake of many apprenticeship standards for crafts on the brink of extinction.
One of our recipients is Katie Gunn, who is training her apprentice, Amelie Priestman, in jewellery making at her business KatieAnnDesigns in Gosport. Amelie is completing the Jewellery, Silversmithing and Allied Trades Professional Apprenticeship overseen by the British Academy of Jewellery.
Katie Gunn says: “For me, mentoring an apprentice is about passing on traditional techniques while encouraging curiosity and creative thinking. Seeing someone develop their skills, confidence and design voice at the bench is incredibly rewarding. It feels important to be part of keeping these skills alive, while also showing how heritage techniques can evolve in modern, sustainable ways.
Alongside these creative projects, my apprentice is also assisting with real workshop jobs such as repairs and resizing, gaining an understanding of the standards and care required in professional jewellery making.”
Apprenticeship+ seeks to establish a better evidence base for the financial needs of small craft businesses wanting to pass on their skills to the next generation, by providing a compelling advocacy case to the Government about the additional support needed to ensure a healthy future for these culturally and economically significant industries.
#heritagecrafts #nationalapprenticeshipweek #jewellerymaking
#matchMAKER opportunity!
Apprentice Stonemason
Location: Doncaster
Deadline: 31 March 2026
Specialising in the conservation and restoration of Britain’s historic buildings and landmarks, Historic Property Restoration Limited are recruiting an apprentice stonemason. Formerly the direct
What you will do at work:
-Basic masonry work with electrical and hand tools.
-Basic drawing board skills & basic instruction in the use of site levelling and setting out equipment.
-Re-pointing of existing masonry and methods, and types of finish to mortar. Common mortar mixes associated with various types of stone considering their jointing configuration and situation.
-Recording, taking down and rebuilding of masonry & cleaning of masonry.
-Detailed conservation of friable stonework including resin repairs and “plastic”/mortar repairs.
-Drilling and pinning stonework and the removal of old iron cramps and fixings.
-Basic health and safety equipment, use and application. Site emergency procedures followed.
-Manual handling techniques and working at heights & working with team members.
-You will be working at various locations but predominately based in the Doncaster area.
Find out how to apply at https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/matchmaker
#matchMAKER is the online platform for work-based training and entry-level employment opportunities hosted by @heritagecrafts and supported by @soanebritain.
This week’s #mondaymaker is Debbie Rudolph @debbierudolph_weaving – a weaver.
Debbie is a Falmouth-based textile designer and heritage weaver who blends traditional techniques with modern sustainability. A graduate of Central Saint Martins, she specialises in hand-woven tapestries and homeware. In March 2025, she began establishing her own natural dye garden, and as of late 2025, she has been weaving these naturally dyed materials into a new collection of Cornish Coastline Tapestries and hand-spun fleece and linen pieces.
Debbie works with traditional second-hand looms, such as Glimakra Countermarch and Upright Tapestry looms, which she restores and rethreads. To make her craft more accessible, she developed her own range of Make Me Looms – a selection of small looms produced from recycled plastic and made locally in Cornwall. As a qualified teacher, she also often teaches weaving workshops.
#heritagecrafts #mondaymaker #weaving
We are profiling the recipients of our latest round of Endangered Crafts Fund grants.
James Anderson @anderson_hats06, from Luton, has been funded to restore antique straw hat making machines and buy a boater hat block for his blocking machine, as part of his mission to revive straw hat making in the town.
James’ grant is funded by the Julia Rausing Trust.
James said: “This funding has been essential to bringing some beautiful rare antique hat manufacturing machinery back into service for another generation to use. I am very grateful to Heritage Crafts for helping me get what I need to bring proper straw hat making back to its ancestral home in Luton.”
#matchMAKER opportunity!
Assistant Ropemaker
Location: Bristol
Deadline: 13th February 2026
Avon Ropes Ltd is a small business which started in Bristol in 2011, and relcoated a year ago to new, bigger premises near Kingswood, Bristol. They primarily produce high quality English-style church bell ropes, supplying to a worldwide market.
They are recruiting an assistant ropemaker to join their small team and help with the manufacture of these church bell ropes, primarily the finishing stages of trimming. The role involves working with natural fibres, wool, along with modern fibres like Polyester and Dyneema.
To apply, please submit a CV and covering letter to [email protected].
Find out how to apply at https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/matchmaker
#matchMAKER is the online platform for work-based training and entry-level employment opportunities hosted by @heritagecrafts and supported by @soanebritain.
@sailmaker_shiner on winning the Scotland and UK Maker of the Year Awards, the craft of traditional sailmaking in the Orkney Islands, and the advice he would give to his younger self. ⛵️🏴 #heritagecrafts #endangeredcrafts #heritagecraftsawards
#matchMAKER opportunity!
Upholstery apprentice
Location: Exeter
Perce & Williams specialise in creating bespoke, luxury upholstery pieces for discerning clients, interior designers, and prestigious international projects. With a strong emphasis on craftsmanship, quality, and design, their work combines traditional techniques with contemporary aesthetics to deliver exceptional furniture built to last. As they grow, they are seeking an upholstery apprentice to join their passionate team.
What you will learn:
-How to strip and rebuild furniture frames from the ground up.
-Upholstery techniques, including webbing, springs, padding, and fabric application.
-Upholstering high-end bespoke furniture such as sofas, chairs, headboards, and ottomans.
-Sewing fabric, leather, and other materials accurately using industrial machinery.
-How to work from design briefs and collaborate with designers and experienced upholsterers.
-Quality control and finishing to a luxury standard.
-Assisting with occasional on-site installations or client visits
This is a hands-on, practical role where you’ll learn how high-end furniture is made from start to finish. No previous upholstery experience is required — full training will be provided. You will start on a part-time basis, with hours increasing over time as your skills and confidence develop, leading to a full-time position.
Find out how to apply at https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/matchmaker
#matchMAKER is the online platform for work-based training and entry-level employment opportunities hosted by @heritagecrafts and supported by @soanebritain
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