Heritage Crafts Awards

Over 20 posts we are profiling the recipients of our recent round of training bursaries.

Emily Scholefield @esch.textiles, from Hampshire, is an artist and embroiderer with a background in ballet who recently completed a contemporary hand embroidery diploma with @handandlocklondon. Her bursary will fund one-to-one online mentoring with Stephanie Woodage of @enpointetutus covering tutu construction, a UAL short course in costume design, and essential equipment.

Emily’s bursary is supported by @costume_society.

Emily said: “I’m so grateful to be given this opportunity to learn tutu-making and develop my skills in costume design. I can’t wait to start the training and I’m really looking forward to creating my costume portfolio and starting my career making dance costumes.”

Join us in conversation with tapestry weaver @chrissiefreeth, online on Tuesday 18 August 2026, 7pm (GMT+1)

For millennia, the loom has been central to the lives of women and the art of storytelling. Join us for a fascinating evening with tapestry weaver and archaeologist Dr Chrissie Freeth as we explore how she continues this ancient tradition, transforming small personal moments, fragile memories and unconfronted experiences into large-scale handwoven tapestries.

Chrissie brings a uniquely rigorous perspective to her craft. With a PhD in archaeology and a career that began in the museum sector, her contemporary practice is deeply rooted in historical material culture. In 2016, she was awarded a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Travelling Fellowship, allowing her to study medieval tapestry techniques first-hand across major collections in Europe and New York.

Chrissie’s work has captured the attention of the international craft and art worlds. Her tapestry Saint Catherine was selected for the prestigious ARTAPESTRY6, Song of the Woods was shortlisted for the Cordis Prize and her striking piece Memento Mori was showcased at the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition.

This conversation comes at a pivotal moment in her career. Alongside a recent grant from the National Lottery/Arts Council England to push the boundaries of large-scale weaving, her exhibition Good Women is currently on display at @kelmscottmanor – the iconic summer home of William Morris – in their first major exhibition of contemporary craft alongside the Morris family’s own collection, marking a spectacular dialogue between historic textile heritage and contemporary practice.

The session will take place on Zoom and attendees must register in advance via https://chrissiefreethinconversation.eventbrite.co.uk or the linktree in our bio. Attendees will also have the opportunity to submit questions in advance.

Over 20 posts we are profiling the recipients of our recent round of training bursaries.

Nic Harding @ravensrockstudio1, from Wirral, served as a Ranger and Forest School practitioner for 22 years before finding leather carving. His bursary will fund ten days of one-to-one training with @armitageleather and a two-day intermediate bag-making course with Jo Heard at the @walsallleatherskillscentre to refine his construction techniques.

Nic’s bursary is supported by @theleathersellers.

Nic said: “This funding is life changing for me, and a catalyst to further my craft and put myself forward. It has arrived at just the right moment. It will catapult my understanding of leatherworking to where it needs to be to feel confident with my craft and stand tall as I offer my work and skills at large.

“It is also part of a larger scheme, one of self care as I continue to recover from the after-effects of complex PTSD, which I have struggled with for ten (very long) years. Getting the bursary and meeting some of the Heritage Crafts team has already boosted my confidence and I am really looking forward to meeting other craftspeople in the 2026 cohort and getting advice on those all important first steps to success!”

Some of our best bits from @craftfestival Bovey Tracey 2026! Thank you for having us and thank you to all of our demonstrators and speakers!

@devongrowsflax @zoegilbertson @sophie_scanlon @dartmoorshoemakers @theletterpresscollective @mottes_pots @stephs.midnight.flit @sthcoaststudio @theenglandarchive @wheelwrightgreg @wheelwright.sam @bramblecarpentry @lacebynicholas @johnwilliamson.dartmoor @jamesfox283 @katestrasdin @thistlemetimbers @sarahvigarsart @papilionaceouspuresilk

Over 20 posts we are profiling the recipients of our recent round of training bursaries.

Kylie McConnell @barnbarroch_organic, from Dumfries and Galloway, is an organic beef farmer seeking to create a circular ‘farm to fashion’ economy by using hides from her own cattle. Her bursary will fund a blend of leather skills courses and training, including time spent at @walsallleatherskillscentre and @armitageleather.

Kylie’s bursary is supported by @theleathersellers.

Kylie said: “I’m an organic beef farmer in south-west Scotland. My goal has been to utilise as much of our beautiful animals as possible to produce traceable leather products – from our farm to fashion. I want people to feel more connected to their leather goods. Thank you to Heritage Crafts and the Leathersellers’ Company for this training bursary. This will enable us to learn from the best and to create beautiful leather products from our own hides.”

Join us in conversation with bee skep maker @chrischarlespark, online on Wednesday 8 July 2026, 7pm (GMT+1)

Join us for a captivating evening with Chris Park, leading authority on bee skeps and traditional apiculture. A master craftsman, skep beekeeper and apitherapist (using bee products for health), Chris lives and breathes the ancient relationship between humans and honeybees.

For years, Chris has kept these vital skills alive, teaching skep-making for the British Beekeeping Association, the National Honey Show and heritage groups across the country. His work sits at the very heart of cultural preservation; with no full-time commercial skep makers left in the UK, the craft is listed on the Heritage Crafts Red List. Beyond the hive, Chris is a true polymath with a deep-rooted passion for ancient technologies, eco-building, folk music and traditional arts and crafts.

The evening also celebrates the launch of Chris’s highly anticipated new book, Bee-Skep Making: heritage, folklore and how to make and use your own skeps (published by @herbert.press). He will share insights from the book, diving into the step-by-step practicalities of working with straw and the folklore, superstitions and history that have surrounded the craft for centuries.

The session will take place on Zoom and attendees must register in advance via https://chrisparkinconversation.eventbrite.co.uk or the linktree in our bio. Attendees will also have the opportunity to submit questions in advance.

Over 20 posts we are profiling the recipients of our recent round of training bursaries.

Steve Farrell, from Carmarthenshire, served for 22 years in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) and has a background in bespoke furniture upholstery. His bursary will fund a part-time foundation course at the @walsallleatherskillscentre alongside essential tools, leather and travel costs, allowing him to master traditional leatherworking and sewing machine techniques.

Steve’s bursary is funded by the Royal British Legion.

Steve said: “Having this funding at 56 is a great opportunity. It will significantly fasttrack my leatherwork skills and give me the ability to start making higher quality leather products and incorporate a wider skillset of techniques taught at the Leather Skills Centre in Walsall.”