The Red List
of Endangered Crafts
The Heritage Crafts Red List of Endangered Crafts, first published in 2017, was the first report of its kind to rank traditional crafts by the likelihood they would survive to the next generation, based on intangible cultural heritage safeguarding principles, led by Heritage Crafts, the only UK UNESCO-accredited NGO working primarily in the domain of traditional craftsmanship.
Donate to save an endangered craft (£5 for the 5th edition)
The list attracted extensive media coverage both in the UK and abroad, shining a light on heritage craft practices under threat from a number of identifiable issues. It is our hope that this research will act as a call to action to those who have it within their power to resolve or alleviate these issues, and that this project will mark the start of long-term monitoring of heritage craft viability and a shared will to avoid the cultural loss that is borne each time a craft dies.
Heritage Crafts is committed to updating the list on a regular basis, and so, with support from the Pilgrim Trust, over 900 organisations and individuals were contacted directly by email and telephone and invited to contribute to the research between September 2024 and May 2025. Participants were asked to provide background information about each craft, such as its history, techniques and local forms, as well as current information relating to the number of skilled craftspeople and trainees, and the ongoing issues affecting the viability of the craft, including the effects of the current energy crisis.
Each craft was then classified into one of four categories of endangerment using a combination of both objective criteria (such as numbers of crafts people and trainees) and subjective criteria (issues affecting the future viability of the craft including training opportunities and market trends). Issues affecting the viability of heritage crafts vary on a craft-by-craft basis, though many can be grouped, and possible solutions devised that will help many crafts practices become more viable.
For the purposes of this research, a heritage craft is defined as ‘a practice which employs manual dexterity and skill and an understanding of traditional materials, design and techniques, and which has been practised for two or more successive generations’. The research focuses on craft practices which are taking place in the UK at the present time, including those crafts which have originated elsewhere, and on those aspects of each craft with a high reliance on hand-work and which involve high levels of hand skill.
If you have any queries about the research, are aware of a heritage craft that is not listed, or have further information to add about any craft, please contact [email protected].
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The BBC reports that Moorcroft Pottery, which stopped trading at the end of April after more than 100 years in business, has been returned to family ownership.
The company has been bought by Will Moorcroft, whose grandfather William Moorcroft built the factory on Sandbach Road in Cobridge in 1913, with support from London department store Liberty.
Mr Moorcroft said he would like to see “as many of the staff as we can bring back” but that he was unable to guarantee all 57 workers would be able to return. He added that they were considering moving production away from the site in Burslem, moving the firm solely to the original factory on Sandbach Road.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy0jxzn8en8o.amp
Tim Noad @teanoad has been awarded an MBE in the King`s Birthday Honours, in recognition of his international reputation as one of the most accomplished artists and craftspeople working in his field, combining heraldry, calligraphy, design and illustration.
Tim was nominated by Heritage Crafts in 2022, and is likely to be one of a number of nominations for him, having since designed The King’s Royal Cypher and the Stole Royal which His Majesty wore at his coronation.
The charity – which was set up in 2009 to support and champion traditional craft skills – has made 32 previously successful nominations for National Honours since 2013, believing that the vernacular craft skills practised across the UK deserve as much recognition as other popularly-celebrated forms of culture.
Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio.
Congratulations to former Heritage Crafts Patron, Dame Emma Bridgwater! 👏
#Repost @emma_bridgewater with @use.repost
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We’re so proud to share that our Founder, Emma Bridgewater, is to be appointed a Dame for her services to Ceramics. A truly fitting recognition of her vision, immense creativity and years spent championing British pottery. What an honour, and so well deserved. A huge congratulations, Dame Emma!
“I’m honoured and very happy about the award; what a marvellous accolade this is – for the people, and the pottery traditions of Stoke-on-Trent! I feel clear that whilst I receive it, they won it, and they so richly deserve such recognition!
My forty years in the Potteries has been a marvellous and unlikely adventure – I feel privileged indeed to have learned about ceramics from the long suffering, resilient and excellent people of Stoke. The abandonment of our manufacturing power feels to me like a gigantic wasted opportunity whilst the unresolved trauma created in the populations of our post industrial cities stands as a running challenge to us all.”
— Emma
#matchMAKER opportunity!
Sewing apprentice (2 places)
Deadline: 14 July 2025
Senator International in Altham are recruiting for a Sewing Apprentice. The successful candidate will work towards completing a Level 2 Sewing Machinist apprenticeship over the duration of 18 months.
Visit #matchMAKER via the linktr.ee in our bio to find out more.
#matchMAKER is the online platform for work-based training and entry-level employment opportunities hosted by @heritagecrafts and supported by @soanebritain.
This week’s #craftfocus is passementrie.
Passementerie is the making of elaborate trimmings such as tassels, braids, gold or silver cord, fringing or edgings for clothing or furnishings.
Skills involved in passementerie comprise dyeing, cord-spinning, weaving and tassel-making, which are coordinated to produce mainly bespoke work.
Dyeing – although usually carried out in independent dye workshops, the dyeing of silk yarn to match the furnishing fabrics on which the trimmings are to be mounted is integral to the design of the end product.
Cord-spinning – whereby component parts used in weaving and tassel-making are produced. The cord-spinner produces ropes, cords and gimps which can be immensely complex, and it is this aspect of passementerie which is most at risk, as it can only be learned by watching and following an already skilled craftsperson.
Weaving – bands, braids and fringes of a range of different formations are woven on a ‘trimmings’, ‘ribbon’ or ‘narrow’ loom.
Tassel-making – the making of tassels and tassel tie-backs, usually using a wooden mould in the centre and covered with silk or other threads, and with gimps and bullions made by the cord-spinner, and often made to co-ordinate with the woven trimmings. The tassel-maker, like the weaver, attaches handmade ‘hangers’, ‘drops’ and ‘jasmines’.
Passementerie is classified as endangered on our crafts list. Increasingly, passementerie is manufactured in greater quantities on power machinery by large manufacturers, and in many countries. While there is still a place for handmade pieces, the market is small, with competition between companies.
Training is often done in-house, without any system of qualification or professional recognition. Cord-spinning is considered the most at risk element and many practitioners are reaching retirement age.
Images: Elizabeth Ashdown @ashdowntextiles
#heritagecrafts #craftfocus #passementerie
#matchMAKER opportunity!
Furniture Making Operative Apprentice
Deadline: 16 June 2025
This is a fantastic opportunity to join the team at Collin’s Bespoke, a quality cabinetry making company, which includes designing kitchens and other interiors. Learning valuable skills from specialised craftsmen to lead on to a successful career in the carpentry industry.
For nearly 30 years, Nick Collins has been designing and making bespoke cabinetry. Collins Bespoke was borne from Nick’s passion for bespoke interiors, and is where his craftsmanship has been nurtured, refined and shared. The Collins Bespoke team is an array of skilled crafts-people, mostly trained in-house: from designing, planning and templating; to finishing, assembling and installing.
Visit #matchMAKER via the linktr.ee in our bio to find out more.
#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 Kitty Griffiths – a bespoke goldsmith, working with precious metals.
Kitty studied a Metalwork and Jewellery degree at Sheffield Hallam University, where her love for metal began. Kitty works with colourful diamonds and carved gemstones, using traditional but playful stone setting styles to create a free spirited twist on classic fine jewellery. Since graduating in 2013, Kitty has worked within the trade for a number of bespoke jewellers and designers. Honing her skills and knowledge, Kitty has set up her own business and brand, ‘Kitty Griffiths Jewellery’, based in Brighton.
#heritagecrafts #mondaymaker #goldsmithining #jewellerymaking
