Under One Roof: A Holistic Heritage Programme Rooted in Place, Skills, and People

Project-managed and delivered by Heritage Culture Communities (HCC)

Client: St Mark’s PCC
Funder: National Lottery Heritage Fund
Project Management, Development & Delivery: Heritage Culture Communities (HCC)

Under One Roof is a multi-strand heritage programme centred on St Mark’s Church, Shelton, designed not only to address urgent conservation needs but to reposition the church as a living cultural, skills, and community asset within its neighbourhood.

With St Mark’s PCC as client and funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Heritage Culture Communities (HCC) led the project as Project Manager across capital works, training and apprenticeships, engagement, interpretation, digital access, volunteering, evaluation, and governance development.

Conservation as a Platform, Not an Endpoint

While the repair of the church roof was a critical component—safeguarding the building from further deterioration—it was deliberately used as a platform for wider outcomes. Conservation works were carefully planned to enable learning on site, visibility of craft skills, and public engagement with the process of heritage repair itself.

Traditional building skills were embedded throughout the programme, including apprenticeships and placements in stonemasonry and conservation-related crafts. Participants worked directly on the fabric of the building, gaining accredited and informal learning while contributing tangible value to the site.

Skills, Progression, and Employment Pathways

Under One Roof placed strong emphasis on progression. Apprentices were supported not only to develop technical skills but to build confidence, professional identity, and employability. Several participants moved into further training, employment, or continued heritage-related work as a result of the project.

HCC coordinated mentoring, pastoral support, and skills development in partnership with specialist contractors, ensuring the project responded to real workforce needs within the heritage and construction sectors.

Community Engagement and Cultural Participation

Engagement was not treated as an add-on. Local residents, schools, and community groups were actively involved through workshops, open days, events, and creative activities. These engagements helped reconnect people with a building that had often felt closed or inaccessible, particularly to those without a church connection.

The project recognised St Mark’s as both a place of worship and a shared neighbourhood landmark, respecting its spiritual function while widening its civic and cultural role.

Interpretation, Digital Access, and Storytelling

Interpretation formed a major strand of delivery. HCC developed on-site interpretation panels, storytelling content, and creative narratives that explored the church’s Gothic Revival architecture, its place within Shelton, and its ongoing restoration.

Digital access was expanded through podcasts, online content, and visual documentation, ensuring that learning and stories reached audiences beyond the physical site. This approach supported inclusive access and aligned with contemporary heritage practice.

Volunteering, Governance, and Legacy

Under One Roof also invested in volunteering structures and governance development, strengthening the PCC’s capacity to manage heritage assets into the future. Training, systems development, and evaluation ensured that learning from the project could inform future funding bids and long-term sustainability.

A Model for Future Heritage Practice

Under One Roof demonstrates how heritage projects can operate as integrated social systems—where conservation, skills, wellbeing, culture, faith, and community are mutually reinforcing. It aligns strongly with the National Lottery Heritage Fund’s investment principles around skills, inclusion, sustainability, and public benefit.

For Stoke-on-Trent, the project offers a replicable model of how historic places can support contemporary lives while remaining rooted in their original purpose and meaning.