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IHBC Annual School: Shrewsbury 2025

Heritage i​n Context

Value : Plan : Change
12 to 14 June 2025
in person and online - from £35 (+VAT)

IHBC Annual Schools: Insights, learning and engagement for all disciplines and interests: Choose the format that suits your needs:

  • 1 day conference: Day School (in-person and online), 13 June
  • 3 day conference: Full School & Day School plus tours, reception, Awards and Annual Dinner, 12-14 June
Book the Full School Book the Day School Book the Virtual School

Would you like to be one of our Annual School sponsors for 2025? 
To find out how contact operations@ihbc.org.uk 

The IHBC’s 2025 Annual School in Shrewsbury explores the complex relationship between ‘context’ and the historic environment, in terms of how we value, manage, and preserve its significance in the face of continued change and intervention.
 
How can understanding and embracing context help practitioners, organisations and communities to successfully manage heritage today, and effectively plan for tomorrow, whilst responding to the pressures of development and the climate emergency?     

The Shrewsbury Day School offers in-person and virtual content from a diverse range of expert speakers, who will share their experiences and practical examples of both the opportunities and challenges for heritage in changing contexts, offering international and more local and regional perspectives, including urban and rural contexts.

#IHBCShrewsbury2025 gives priority to continuing professional development (CPD) for practitioners with conservation, heritage and inter-disciplinary interests. As such, the programme reflects all aspects the IHBC’s Competences and Areas of Competences, for the Friday Day ​(in-person and online) School, themed around key current issues for practitioners:

  • Professional: The philosophical and practical facets of understanding and embedding context in conservation practice and management.
  • Intervention: The principles of context-led design and development in both urban and rural settings.
  • S​ustainability: The physical impact of climate change and environmental factors on context and the historic environment 

IHBC School formats and options cater to all players, practices and disciplines in heritage and culture, places and conservation.

Enjoy, engage and learn at IHBC Schools across:

Who should attend?
IHBC Schools offer innovative insights and opportunities for everyone, and not just for specialists!

Delegates include specialists in conservation from a wide range of disciplines and practice.

For non-specialists with a more general understanding of conservation this conference offers a chance to look to the IHBC’s School for updates in practice and policy as well as offering valuable networking opportunities.

Community representatives and volunteers with and interest in local building and area conservation issues of all sorts, from policy to processes and projects, will find an accessible and cost-effective overview of current and new solutions and opportunities.

Typical delegate backgrounds include:

  • Planning (from community to strategic and development management)
  • Voluntary and third sector
  • Architecture
  • Urban Design
  • Heritage management
  • Landscape
  • Community
  • History
  • Archaeology
  • Construction
  • Engineering
  • Development
  • Traditional skills
  • Project management
  • Policy makers
  • Specifiers
  • Industry & commercial
  • Innovators

The School welcomes people working in national and local government and related bodies, private practice, education, academia, charities and other voluntary bodies.

Whether starting out on your career or active in the wider heritage sector, there is no better way than to develop your conservation and heritage-related skills, knowledge and understanding than at this year’s Annual School in Shrewsbury.