Our committee

Nic has been a Private Practicing Conservator for over 24 years. Having trained at Weymouth College, Nic worked for St Blaise in 1992 before working for Historic Scotland from 1993 to 1999. Nic’s career highlights as a Private Practitioner Conservator include leading a team of twenty conservators and conservation technicians conducting conservation works to the historic structure and architectural decoration of Rosslyn Chapel, near Edinburgh, leading a team conducting conservation works to historic building fabric of Glasgow School of Art. Since 2016, Nic has worked as Consultant Conservator of Historic Structures and Monuments. Projects have included consolidation of the ruined Temple of Decision, illustrated and relocation and conservation treatments to Robert Burns Statue, including the discovery and opening of a time capsule dating from 1898 and collaboratively conserving its contents. Currently, Nic is working on Oronsay Priory in the inner Hebrides and in Saudi Arabia; both projects require conservation works to historic structures and carved stones.

Melinda is a textile conservator working in private practice. She previously studied for a BA in fine art embroidery at MMU before working in the furniture sector and re-training in conservation at the University of Lincoln. She has been a director of the Landi Company, based at Burghley House, since 2021. Over the last 3 years, she has been the Emerging Professionals Rep for the Icon Textile Committee, a role she has enjoyed. She is looking forward to working with conservators from a range of sectors, supporting and meeting other conservators in private practice.

Kelly trained at the University of Lincoln, and has been working in private practice as a Textile Conservator since 2019. In 2021 Kelly became a Director of the Landi Company, a textile conservation studio based at Burghley House in Stamford, working to build upon the foundations of the company that Sheila Landi established. She has a keen interest in tapestry conservation and enjoys sharing conservation knowledge with the general public. Kelly is looking forward to connecting with other professional within private practice, sharing ideas and supporting fellow private practitioners.

Isabella is a textile conservator with her own studio, Rossi Conservation in Scotland. Her interests are costume, hidden modern materials, and sharing conservation knowledge with textile artists. She looks forward to promoting the amazing work that private practitioners do to preserve cultural heritage!

Having graduated from the Basque Country and Northumbria University in paper and paintings conservation, Sandra gained positions with the Iberdrola Fellowship, Fine Arts Museum of Bilbao with a short placement at El Prado. Sandra has also worked on a diverse range of world class art and artifacts at the Museum National Trust, and Tate, with whom she continues to collaborate closely. Since November 2023, she runs Manley Restoration, a conservation studio founded in 1891. Outside of conservation life, Sandra’s interests include music (Sandra plays the bassoon) and the discovery of new places.

Alison is a textile conservator who has worked in private practice for nearly 25 years. Since 2005 she has been the owner of Textile Conservation Ltd based in Bristol. Alison is very familiar with the challenges, positive and negative, of working as a freelancer and small business owner. She plans to bring the knowledge and insights gained over the years to developing events and activities for the group that both celebrate and support independent practitioners and practices.

Sophie has been working as a conservator since 2012, completing a masters in the conservation of historic objects at the University of Lincoln. She has worked in both museums and historic houses as an employed conservator during much of the last 12 years, including for Historic Royal Palaces, Doddington hall, Rotherham Borough council and the Bowes Museum. Since the start of 2023 she has been working as a freelance textile conservator based in Leeds. Sophie is still finding her way in the private practice world and was keen to become part of the committee to help others in finding their feet and be part of bringing private practitioners together to collaborate and support each other.

Sophie McAloone is an easel painting conservator and the Conservation Manager at Fine Art Restoration Company, which is a commercial conservation studio based in Cumbria and London. She works on a range of paintings from 16th century pieces on wooden panels up to contemporary mixed media artworks.

Mandy is a freelance Objects Conservator specialising in Ceramics at Glaze Conservation Ltd, based in north Wiltshire. She graduated from Cardiff University’s MSc Conservation Practice in 2020, and worked in Historic England’s Archive Conservation team for two years, before setting up her own private practice in April 2024.