Glasgow currently has around 130 historic buildings listed on the Buildings at Risk Register, half of which have been there for over a decade. Pre 1945 buildings make up more than 40% of Glasgow’s housing stock, and within this, 64% have disrepair to critical elements and 84% have some kind of disrepair. With Glasgow hosting the 2021 COP26 conference, and the city focussing in on Climate Change and Sustainability, GCHT are passionate about highlighting the Buildings at Risk Register and what we can do to tackle this crisis.

In this CPD lecture, Niall Murphy will delve into why Glasgow has so many buildings on the Register, and will explore what GCHT has been doing to address the problem including: case studies of meanwhile uses; how we have tried to get buildings off the Register and back into use; or tried to set them on the path to a sustainable future.

Taylor Cross-Whiter will then outline GCHT’s significant resources relating to this issue, including the Snapshot initiative (https://www.glasgowheritage.org.uk/glasgow-historic-environment-snapshot-2018/) and the Development Grants programme, which supports projects in their early stages and help get historic buildings back into viable use with the vital repairs they need.

Niall Murphy is Deputy Director of GCHT and the Chair of the Govanhill Baths Building Preservation Trust, which is working toward the removal of Govanhill Baths from the Buildings at Risk Register and its sustainable re-use as a health and wellbeing centre.

Taylor Cross-Whiter is the Development Officer at GCHT and supports grantees to fund feasibility studies and projects to find viable new uses for Glasgow’s traditional buildings. Taylor has a degree in Architectural Conservation and recently delivered GCHT’s Conservation Accreditation Conference.

This CPD was delivered as part of GCHT’s “THE GREENEST BUILDING HAS ALREADY BEEN BUILT” programme, in line with COP26 2021.