A Study Of British Modern Conservation Practice

This study is an examination of British modern architecture conservation practice.Through case study analysis, the intention is to offer an understanding of the uniquecharacteristics of modern heritage in Britain and how they have informed an evolvingconservation practice.The analysis begins with an introduction to modern architecture history in Britain,which emphasizes that British modernism is a result of the parallel social democraticmovement of the time. In architecture and landscape, the British modern movementdefines an era of evolving ideology rather than a specific style. Following this is a briefintroduction to how modern conservation operates in Britain, including the variouspolicies in place and the stakeholders involved in the process.The case studies are selected to illustrate the range of modern conservation practice inBritain from the end of the1980’s to today and include; the restoration of early modernicons, the adaption of postwar modern housing, new development around listedmodern buildings etc.The paper concludes by examining the difference between modern and historicbuilding heritage in Britain. Modern conservation practice in Britain is a changingconcept based on experience and lessons learnt through time. It has come to be a veryopen minded practice with the key action to balance the needs of various stakeholdersin the process. The paper offers the conclusion that with modern buildings it isimportant to preserve the ideology and with this in mind determines that adaptation isitself a significant act of conservation with respect to modern buildings.