Nigel H Walter
Nigel Walter is a Specialist Conservation Architect whose research is heavily informed by practice. The core of his research is the development of a narrative- and tradition-based approach to conservation that addresses living buildings, addressed in a monograph, Narrative Theory in Conservation: Change and Living Buildings (Routledge 2020).
Nigel's doctoral research (University of York) explored how the conservation process is experienced by those communities that animate and sustain living historic buildings, particularly medieval parish churches. With Peter Lamarque he has explored this developing argument in the field of philosophical aesthetics. Other research interests include the relation of the architectural profession to conservation (including the Architectural Review and the Townscape movement), post-war/natural disaster reconstruction, and the philosophical/theological issues surrounding historic buildings.
Nigel is the director of Archangel, a Cambridge-based architectural practice, working with churches and other community groups, and is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects; he is as comfortable writing and speaking in a range of non-academic settings as in academia. He is actively involved in international conservation, and is a member of the ICOMOS International Scientific Committees on Places of Religion and Ritual (PRERICO) and Theory and Philosophy of Conservation and Restoration (TheoPhilos). He is currently a research associate in the Centre for the Study of Christianity and Culture at the University of York.
Nigel's doctoral research (University of York) explored how the conservation process is experienced by those communities that animate and sustain living historic buildings, particularly medieval parish churches. With Peter Lamarque he has explored this developing argument in the field of philosophical aesthetics. Other research interests include the relation of the architectural profession to conservation (including the Architectural Review and the Townscape movement), post-war/natural disaster reconstruction, and the philosophical/theological issues surrounding historic buildings.
Nigel is the director of Archangel, a Cambridge-based architectural practice, working with churches and other community groups, and is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects; he is as comfortable writing and speaking in a range of non-academic settings as in academia. He is actively involved in international conservation, and is a member of the ICOMOS International Scientific Committees on Places of Religion and Ritual (PRERICO) and Theory and Philosophy of Conservation and Restoration (TheoPhilos). He is currently a research associate in the Centre for the Study of Christianity and Culture at the University of York.
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Papers by Nigel H Walter
This paper approaches accessibility in historic buildings in England from two angles. The first is a consideration of two separate guidance documents, from Historic England and from the Church of England respectively; each document is outlined, offering points of comparison with guidance in other jurisdictions. One consistent theme in these documents is the positive framing of accessibility as of benefit not only for those with disabilities, but also for all users and potentially for the heritage itself.
The second aspect of the paper comprises three case study projects from my own practice, spread across a range of building types, ages, and grades of protection, which together demonstrate by example some of what is currently considered possible in England, and illustrate how practice relates to policy and guidance. The paper ends by briefly reflecting on what light accessibility policy might shed on some broader questions of heritage concern.
This paper approaches accessibility in historic buildings in England from two angles. The first is a consideration of two separate guidance documents, from Historic England and from the Church of England respectively; each document is outlined, offering points of comparison with guidance in other jurisdictions. One consistent theme in these documents is the positive framing of accessibility as of benefit not only for those with disabilities, but also for all users and potentially for the heritage itself.
The second aspect of the paper comprises three case study projects from my own practice, spread across a range of building types, ages, and grades of protection, which together demonstrate by example some of what is currently considered possible in England, and illustrate how practice relates to policy and guidance. The paper ends by briefly reflecting on what light accessibility policy might shed on some broader questions of heritage concern.