A day in the life of a Maintenance Surveyor

In short, my job is to run small-scale repair projects in my region, ranging from re-roofing properties to replacing bridges. In practice, no two days are the same, and I’m responsible for maintaining more than 380 structures in the South and West region. It’s a lot to manage, but there’s so much variety in what I cover and the different expertise I require daily.

The Maintenance team

To start at the beginning, I joined the Trust just over two years ago after a decade working at Glasgow City Heritage Trust and on building conservation projects. Before this, I studied Architecture at the Glasgow School of Art and have recently completed a Master’s in the Conservation of Historic Buildings with the Weald & Downland Living Museum. The creation of the maintenance surveyor roles supports the Trust’s new focus on maintenance programmes and a renewed commitment to the early care and protection of our buildings.

Initially, a large part of my remit was understanding our current stock, determining what maintenance works were needed, and prioritising those repairs. Now, it’s about focusing on the importance of planned, preventative maintenance and ensuring we make the best use of our resources.

The role of a maintenance surveyor

We care for a wide range of properties in the South and West, from castles and country homes to cottages and bridges. The challenge of the role is undertaking the work required to repair and maintain the buildings whilst protecting their heritage significance and the things that make them unique. I spend a lot of my time supporting the region’s excellent team of facilities managers as they deal with required repairs. This often involves writing specifications and schedules of works, coordinating inspections on site, and carrying out condition surveys that inform what maintenance tasks are needed. Many of our budgets are based on these condition surveys, which would be conducive to conducting these programmes and undertaking regular preventative maintenance.

I also regularly work with suppliers, establishing a regional supply chain and building a network. Many repairs to our heritage properties and structures require special expertise and knowledge of traditional trades, so we’re always looking for more people to support this conservation work.

My role also includes preparing licence applications for our work depending on the project’s requirements. Several of our buildings provide shelter to bats and nesting birds and work alongside protected ecology, which requires a licence from NatureScot. Because our properties are historically significant, most projects require planning or listed building consent.

A day in the life

I work with such a wide range of building stock that my days are really varied. Currently, a lot of my time is spent ensuring that our buildings are in good condition for the coming winter and taking all necessary precautions to prevent leaks over the next few months. Even with properties that close over the winter, much time is taken to keep them running during the cold and damp months.

I often catch up with Sean Currie, our National Maintenance Lead, who joined the Trust last year. Sean works with the regional maintenance surveyors to help us understand what’s happening from a Trust-wide perspective and ensure we all share learnings. He also supports us in advocating for maintenance work we believe is essential.

I’ve been undertaking a lot of work at Culzean Castle & Country Park recently. We’re currently repairing the Water House in Deer Park. We did archaeology work in advance to understand the structure, and surveyors and engineers supported our maintenance plan. We’ll be doing masonry works first, improving its condition and securing it for the future.

We’re also performing structural and geotechnical investigations at Culzean to determine movement from its cliffside position and any cracks forming. This work is vital because the estate is vulnerable, and we must stay on top of all repairs before lasting damage occurs. Our job as a charity is to protect and share our places, so maintenance underpins a lot of that care.

I’m passionate about planned preventative maintenance, and the Trust’s commitment to this work is essential. I’ve done so much in my first two years that I’m proud of, and there is much more to be done to preserve our amazing places in the South and West. Our job at the Trust is to care for, share, and protect Scotland’s natural and cultural heritage, and I’m glad I can play a part in that.