Download Icon's full Impact report below:
Impact Report 2022-2023.pdf
Chief Executive’s Summary
Sara Crofts, Chief Executive
April 2022 marked the beginning of our work to deliver the new Icon Strategy.
Over the coming years, our annual Impact Report will showcase our achievements delivering the five overarching strategic aims. achievements that would not be possible without the tireless dedication and effort of our staff team, Board of Trustees and the many volunteers who contribute their time in a myriad of ways.
Iconnect
Looking back over the last year it is heartening to see Icon’s continuing transformation into a full-fledged professional body, and to note the increase in our public profile and sector standing. The relaunch of our member magazine (now called Iconnect) in January marked a key point in our organisational maturity and demonstrates our growing self-confidence.
It also highlights our desire to share our stories with a wider audience, reaching out to people who embrace our approach to caring for cultural heritage but who might not necessarily characterise themselves as conservators. Our ambition is for Icon to be the home of professional conservators and heritage scientists in the broadest sense, encompassing the full spectrum of specialisms from objects to museum collections to buildings, those working in private practice and those who work in our institutions.
Working to achieve greater accessibility and to be more inclusive has been an important element in two of the projects that we undertook during the year: the review of Icon’s accreditation framework and the development of a new Skills Strategy.
Skills Strategy
Ensuring that the skills to effectively care for objects, collections and built heritage exist within the conservation workforce relies on a fine balance between the number of individuals undertaking training, the skills they are being taught, and the need to respond to demand from employers, clients and commissioners of conservation services. Our new Skills Strategy will enable us to focus our time and resources on the most pressing training issues within our sector as well as supporting the development of sustainable entry routes into the conservation profession and providing continuing professional development opportunities for conservators and heritage scientists throughout their careers.
All change!
The end of the year also brought a key change in Icon’s leadership as we bid farewell to outgoing Chair, James Grierson, and welcomed Emma Chaplin as Icon’s new Chair. Emma’s professional experience as a museum consultant and former CEO of the Association of Independent Museums stands her in good stead for the role, as she appreciates how to balance the needs of Icon as a professional body with the delivery of its charitable objectives. I also shared news of my departure for pastures new at the end of four years as Chief Executive. I leave with many fond memories and the hope that the organisation will continue to blossom and grow over the coming years.
