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The increasingly rare skills and expertise of the hand bookbinding trade
will be preserved in the UK through a unique new training initiative,
The Queen's Bindery Apprenticeship, which launches today (11 July).
The scheme, due to begin in Autumn 2016, will be the only bindery
apprenticeship available in the UK and the first since the 1970s.
Over a seven-year period pilot, up to six apprentices will gain
unparalleled experience working in the Royal Bindery at Windsor and
external workshops, acquiring a broad range of bookbinding skills,
including fine leather binding, edge-gilding and gold finishing, which
may otherwise be lost for ever.
City & Guilds qualifications will be received upon completion of
the five-year training programme.
The Royal Bindery in Windsor Castle was founded in 1770 by George III, a
noted bibliophile, and has been in operation ever since, with many of
the tools it houses having been used for centuries.
Today, it is at the forefront of preserving the high standards of
craftsmanship that are the benchmark of the professional hand
bookbinding trade.
The seven-year pilot will cost around £500,000 and be supported by eight
charity Founding Partners: Royal Collection Trust, Antiquarian
Booksellers Association, City & Guilds of London Institute, The
Clothworkers' Company, The Leathersellers' Company, The Printing
Charity, Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust and The Stationers' Company.
In addition, there are three Skills & Industry Partners who will
benefit from employing the apprentices and contribute to costs: The
Royal Bindery, Blissett Bookbinders and Shepherds, Sangorski &
Sutcliffe.
Oliver Urquhart Irvine, The Librarian & Assistant Keeper of The Queen's
Archives, said: "There is no substitute for learning a craft in a
professional workshop.
The Queen's Bindery Apprenticeship will ensure that the finest standards
of craftsmanship of this valuable trade are passed on to future
generations."
Applicants from a range of backgrounds are encouraged to apply as no
previous experience or qualifications are necessary.
All relevant skills will be taught as part of the scheme, but
applicants should be creative and have an interest in the field.
Application to the apprenticeship scheme will be online via the Royal
Collection Trust website
www.royalcollectiontrust.org.uk
For further information and images, please contact the Royal Collection
Trust Press Office, T. +44 (0)20 7839 1377,
press@royalcollection.org.uk
Notes to Editors
Royal Collection Trust, a department of the Royal Household, is responsible for the care of the
Royal Collection and manages the public opening of the official
residences of The Queen.
Income generated from admissions and from associated commercial
activities contributes directly to The Royal Collection Trust, a
registered charity. The aims
of The Trust are the care and conservation of the Royal Collection, and
the promotion of access and enjoyment through exhibitions, publications,
loans and educational programmes. Royal
Collection Trust’s work is undertaken without public funding of any
kind.
The Royal Collection is among the largest and most important art collections in the world,
and one of the last great European royal collections to remain intact.
It comprises almost all aspects of the fine and decorative arts,
and is spread among some 15 royal residences and former residences
across the UK, most of which are regularly open to the public.
The Royal Collection is held in trust by the Sovereign for her
successors and the nation, and is not owned by The Queen as a private
individual.
Explore the Royal Collection at
www.royalcollection.org.uk
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