People

Managing Director

James studied Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Cambridge and Estate Management at Oxford Brookes University. He began working at Hutton and Rostron in 1986, specialising in electronic publishing, primarily for the construction industry.

Prior to joining H+REI full time he undertook project specific historic research and assisted on specialist surveys of buildings ranging from Hampton Court Palace to Brighton Pavilion.

James became a director of H+REI in 1999. He continues to work as a building surveyor and historic building consultant with an emphasis in the built environment of the Georgian period and ecclesiastical buildings. He liaises with Conservation Officers and Planning Departments all over the country but with a particular focus on London.

His experience is valuable to developers and property agents trying to achieve the best value on their projects especially in the discharge of conditions issued by insurers such as Premier and NHBC.

Associate Director (Northern)

Peter is a Fellow of the Institute of Specialist Surveyors and Engineers (ISSE), formerly the Institute of Remedial Treatment Surveyors. He was a director of the institute for over five years and initiated the institute’s inaugural international conference on Dry Rot in 1995.

He is a member of the Property Care Association’s (PCA) board of Independent Consultants. He successfully introduced the UK’s first full-scale, scientifically controlled treatment of dry rot using heat as the lethal agent rather than chemicals and now specializes in the strategic management of moisture and decay problems in buildings.

Peter joined H+REI in 1998 as an independent consultant in building pathology and remedial treatments. His consultancy work involves building inspections for decay and dampness, expert witness reports and specification and supervision of works on historic and modern buildings throughout the UK.

Building Surveyor and Rothound Handler

Peter joined H+REI in 2006. He is qualified in timber strength grading of both hard and softwood timbers and carries out specialist timber condition investigations and analysis of penetrating damp.

Peter also trains and handles the Rothounds for building surveys.

Specialist Surveyor & Building Scientist

Andy joined H+R in 2012. Recent areas of work include historic research of buildings and local areas for the inclusion in conservation management plans and national databases, energy management (both building and conservation) and the interpretation of associated data for key buildings in the National Trust’s portfolio, as well as degree day analysis used to help focus future goals and milestones for energy efficiency.

His interest lies in continuing to integrate his scientific background with his interest and knowledge for the conservation of historic buildings and areas. Particular areas of interest are environmental monitoring and building pathology and diagnosis leading to the rectification of building failures.

Senior Building Technician

Clive worked extensively in the building trade specializing in plumbing, heating and roof coverings.

He has been a member of Surrey Fire and Rescue for 36 years, presently as crew manager at his local fire station.

Clive joined H+R in 1978 after being recruited from the team carrying out the restoration of Netley House. Over the past three decades with the firm Clive has worked on every major H+R project.

His wide practical knowledge and experience of the built environment provides a powerful asset to the firm.

Historic Building Defects Surveyor & Wood Scientist

Andrew studied for his BA in Fine art with the University of Leeds before deciding to become a Traditional Timber Framer and Conservation Carpenter with the Green Oak Carpentry Company in Hampshire. He is currently studying for his MSc in Timber Building Conservation with York University through the Weald and Downland Living Museum in West Sussex.

Andrew Joined H+R in 2018 as a specialist timber surveyor and timber engineer. He specialises in the provision for timber structure analysis and consultancy advice to architects and structural engineers. With years spent as a conservation carpenter and framer he has gained a significant understanding of how the historic built timber environment was fashioned as well as the practical skills and knowledge of how to sympathetically repair, reconstruct and conserve these significant historic structures.

Specialist Surveyor, Conservator and Rothound Handler

BA (Hons), PgD (Cons)

Izzie studied BA (Hons) Conservation and Restoration at the University of Lincoln, her dissertation investigated whether the use of Retrospective Planning applications should be terminated for Listed Buildings. With an interest in wooden structures and working with wood this led to her gaining a Postgraduate Diploma in Conservation of Furniture and Related Materials at West Dean College. While studying Izzie specialized in the conservation of decorative surfaces and developed a strong interest in Paint Analysis through conservation courses as well as work experience with Patrick Baty (Historic Paint Consultant)

Izzie joined H+R in 2018 and her interests lie in researching and assessing historical interiors and features in buildings particularly listed buildings for their continued conservation. Izzie has also taken on the role of Rothound handler and works with ‘Pip’ the newest member to the Rothound team

H+R Rothound Dogs

Rothounds are typically part of an H+R specialist surveying team and operate throughout the UK.  They support H+R surveyors by sniffing out active dry rot (Serpula lacrymans). Dogs of 2-3 years old are best for training as they have lost their puppy behaviour and are still at a stage where they can bond with their handler. Both 10 year old Sam and 14 year old Wilson are Labradors, a breed of dog with a well-documented sense of smell. 2 year old Sprocker Pip, is the newest addition to the Rothound pack. Pip was re-homed from a farm in North Yorkshire and is currently undergoing her Rothound training with her Rothound handler. When looking for potential search dogs we look for dogs with a good scenting ability, a tendency to be single minded and the willingness to work. These are not always the type of dog you would select as a pet but are more natural hunting or working dogs.

Rothounds are often re-homed. Sam came from a rescue centre in Cumbria, and Wilson from a farm near Kendal.

Rothounds need to safely operate in the mixed environments found in industrial and historic buildings. They also need to be able to operate in areas where there may be distractions such as people, machines and other operations taking place. The handlers need to be able to carry out a risk assessment for themselves and the dogs, to read the dog’s reactions to a live scent and to interpret how the dog is reacting. Once the location of the scent source is located or narrowed down by the dogs, the handler is able to carry out a professional assessment of the findings using traditional surveying methods.

As the dogs become used to their handlers and working in buildings it is interesting to see the dogs actually narrowing down the factors that they attribute to dry rot. They learn to hone in on damp areas (which they associate with their target scent and a reward) and in many cases this can be useful to the handler in identifying other problems.

It only takes about two or three weeks to train a dog to locate a specific scent. However, it takes about 6 months to train an H+R Rothound. This dog training does not involve any food rewards as this can cause the dogs to false indicate. Instead training focusses on the searching being part of a big game for the dog and their reward is to play with their training toy and to be praised by their handler.

Sam and Wilson have since retired from the workforce, and are comfortably enjoying retirement with their Rothound handlers, while also keeping Pip company!