News across the Commonwealth

In Port of Spain, Stollmeyer’s Castle has been restored by the Office of the Prime Minister for official functions. The elaborate Scottish baronial landmark is the embodiment of shared heritage with timber from Guyana and Canada, cast iron, stock bricks and ceramic floor tiles from England, slates from Wales and decorative stained glass. At the nearby Red House, a major restoration project is underway for the Senate and Parliament Chambers.

James Bramble, Executive Director of the British Napoleonic Bicentenary Trust, reveals some of the threats to the built heritage of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, one of the remotest places on earth, with several examples – including Banks Battery and Jacob’s Ladder, both of which date to the early 18th century and are remarkable as feats of structural engineering, as well as historically significant sites...

Conservation Architect Nilina Deb Lal talks about the Grade I listed Alipore and Presidency Jails in Kolkata in India, the risks and opportunities associated with their impending change of use, and the delicate balance between heritage significance and land value...

The recently established Caribbean Heritage Network, which the Commonwealth Heritage Forum has joined as an organisational member, hopes to develop a framework to promote the management of historic sites in the region, and promote cultural heritage.

Historic ruins can be adapted for new uses. Spanish Town High School sits on the Parade Ground of the Old Barracks built in 1791. Intact and roofed until the 1970s, now only the surrounding walls still stand.