Prince laments loss of our gold beaters and cricket ball makers
THE Prince of Wales has lamented the decline in traditional craft skills in Britain and called for more to be done to ensure their survival for future generations.
He spoke out as a landmark report warned that dozens of crafts – including piano, fan, broom and parchment making – are dying out.
Others, such as the manufacture of cricket balls, saws and spades, gold beating and sieve-making, have already disappeared in the face of cheap imports or falling demand.
The threat to Britain’s craft skills has been highlighted in a report warning that many could disappear unless more is done to highlight their importance to the country’s heritage.
The Prince has called for a greater “appreciation” of traditional craftsmanship and for more effort to preserve their continued existence.
He said: “Traditional crafts are as much a part of our shared heritage as our wonderful historic landscapes, beautiful buildings, rare breeds of native farm animals and varied museum collections.
“We must gather more information on the crafts identified so far to ensure that no more treasured skills are lost for ever.”
In a foreword to the Heritage Craft Association’s (HCA) Red List of Endangered Crafts report, he added: “I very much hope that the Red List will encourage more interest and further research into this prized aspect of our heritage, expanding our shared appreciation of traditional craftsmanship and, of course, placing these crafts on a sustainable footing so that they can continue to bring genuine economic and cultural benefits to our communities for generations to come.”
The report states that the traditional manufacture of cricket balls, sieves or riddles, and lacrosse sticks, along with gold beating, has already died out. The HCA puts much of the blame on the growth of mass manufacturing, along with imports from countries where materials and labour are much cheaper.
Chinese imports of cheap gold leaf all but killed off the gold beating industry, and the last existing manufacturer, Birmingham’s W Habberley Meadows, ceased production after being unable to find anyone willing to learn the craft.
Similarly, hand-stitched cork and leather cricket balls are now imported from south Asia and finished off in the UK. London-based Dukes Cricket Balls stopped making them after changes to migration rules made it harder to recruit foreign workers and no British youngsters showed an interest in taking up an apprenticeship.
Traditional cricket bat making could go the same way, with craftsmen who work with English willow undercut by mass manufacturers.
Traditional piano making has suffered a collapse, with only one commercial craft maker now in existence. Cavendish Pianos, in North Yorkshire, aims to make 50 pianos a year in the face of cheap imports from China and Indonesia.