QEST to nurture craft skills

ONE organisation that does support craftspeople in the Jewellery Quarter is QEST (Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust).

As Britain’s leading crafts charity, its aim is to help talented artisans achieve excellence through granting them scholarships and providing one-to-one training with acknowledged masters in their particular field.

So far, QEST has helped nearly 450 talented craftspeople, including many in the Jewellery Quarter.

Deborah Pocock, executive director of QEST, said: “QEST aims to sustain Britain’s cultural heritage by supporting excellence in British craftsmanship and one of the most important hub of craft skills in the country is Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter.

“Many of the skills within its artisan community complement one another, so their combined value is much greater than the sum of its parts.

“Of the 460 talented craftspeople who have received a QEST Scholarship, quite a few work in the Jewellery Quarter.

“With local property prices rising, there is mounting pressure on craftspeople to sell their workshops, move out of the area and disperse.

“By allowing them to develop their skills, they can build a sustainable business and so maintain the Jewellery Quarter’s unique pool of talent.

“Among those who have benefited from a QEST scholarship and who are currently working in the Jewellery Quarter are Craig Struthers, one of the country’s most exciting watchmakers, the goldsmith and silversmith, Jack Row and the jeweller and sculptor, Anna Lorenz.”