11 minute read
Coniston Stonecraft An Interview with
Coniston Stonecraft
An Interview with Brendan Donnelly
Advertisement
By Sarah Ridgway
This week we spoke to Brendan Donnelly from Coniston Stonecraft in the Lake District who expertly hand-make products from the locally quarried slate inspired by the stunning surroundings.
The business felt the impact of the pandemic as medal making for the local fell runs and hospitality, their biggest clients ceased to operate. Instead, they adapted to bounce back stronger than ever. The team has since grown to include two apprentices and recently won an inCumbria Business Award for the Best New Business of the Year.
Slate is the right material for the North-West of England and North Wales. It is what we have always had and used, and it looks fantastic. The products we produce are beautiful, there are no two words about it. Nobody has ever written to us with negative feedback, our customers relay that they are absolutely overjoyed with what we send them, that’s because the stone itself is so beautiful.
Tell us about your product
The stone is 400 million years old and can only be found in the Lake District. You can get slate all around the world, but you can only get Westmorland Sea Green and Brathay Blue/Grey Slate from the Lake District. Our slate masons are so qualified that they can pinpoint which quarry it has come from because there are so many different varieties in the Lake District. This is the huge difference between our slate and that being produced in China and Brazil. Chinese and Brazilian slate are all the same but ours are so interesting and unique as no two pieces are the same, we can produce similar but not an exact copy and that makes us unique from the mass-produced market. We are also lucky to have a local limestone quarry which provides our beautiful creamy Baycliff stone. First and foremost, we want to spread the word of Lake District slate and don’t want to make it unattainable. Our slate is a luxury premium product that has been quarried in the Lake District by highly qualified slate masons and there are not many of them left anymore. Like most things, the cost of slate isn’t going down and it is quite hard to get yet we still want to make it affordable which is what we have done. When people unwrap our products, they feel special which is always our aim. The personalised label on the bottom of each product reads made in the Lake District, a guarantee of 250 years, who made it, and which quarry it came from because we draw from about six quarries.
Your website says Slate has its limits, but you are keen to push the stereotypes, what requests can you accommodate?
We always welcome bespoke requests as that is what we love, plaques remain a popular ask for loved ones or pets as many want the latter for their gardens and something personal that will withstand the test of time. We also get a lot of requests from high-end restaurants in the area and throughout the country who come to us with their ideas and ask us to create something special to showcase their food.
We are not a big operation just a team of six not even on a road, we are on the side of the fell. We have a fourwheel drive to get the slate up but are limited on producing larger items such as kitchen tops so we don’t as they would most likely break on the way up. The business is in a small house that used to be an old copper house and that’s why the railway line extended to Coniston to collect the copper. So, when people ask us where they can park, we tell them the truth, they need to park in the village and walk up the fell to see us.
How important is being an ethical and sustainable business and how do incorporate this?
We like to do the right thing and the right thing is being as ethical and eco-friendly as we can. We will never go outside of Cumbria for our slate, the furthest we will go is 12 miles. We get all our electricity from the local hydroelectric power station which is generated by Church Beck 50 yards away from us. We cool our machines off with water from Mines Beck, so we don’t have to use oil which gives the slate a lovely tactile, clean, and fresh feeling. In terms of packaging, we have got rid of any plastics and everything we use is donated from local companies that would have otherwise gone to landfill, we use cardboard from local bike shops in Carlisle and a Lancashire Cotton Mill sends us all their roll ends and old swatch books which we use to wrap products. We also work with Right to Work in Kendal a charity who train people to upcycle sofas and cushions, and we re-use the foam that would usually go to Landfill. We are a Green Small Business accredited and in the process of getting all our lighting and machines as ecologically sound as they can be, so it is not all talk we are trying our best.
What effect did the pandemic have on the business?
Before the pandemic, a large part of the business was making medals for the Lakes fell runs, when we first locked down 40% of our business disappeared
overnight and we are still not back to the previous fell run levels, it’s nice to have them back but still means we don’t produce as many medals as we did. Our other big market is hospitality which was also on hold, so instead we started producing more lamps and clocks. We also began collaborating with other businesses in the area such as cosmetic company Pure Lakes who put their product in hotels. Instead of being displayed on a generic bit of plastic, Pure Lakes use our slate which looks lovely and authentic.
Tell us about your apprentice Liam and your plans to grow and preserve those heritage skills
The pandemic made us think long term as two of our masons are in their 50’s and 60’s and between them had a huge amount of valuable experience with no one to pass it on to. We found our apprentice Liam from Furness College who happens to be of fourth generation in this industry, with his Great-Granddad, Grandad and Dad all working in local quarries. He would have gone into it too, but the quarry game is being destroyed by imports from China and Brazil so wasn’t a viable option for him. Fast forward to today and Liam is now a slate mason, which he loves, and his work has already been rewarded and last year he received The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship out of only 20 scholarships on offer. The trust looks after skills that are in decline such as paper makers, thatchers and masons etc and it was great to go down to London with him to receive his award.
What is new for Coniston Stonecraft in 2022
We want to continue to make more bespoke products and collaborate with other creatives. We collaborated with a couple of glass companies who produce different types of glass which we think will lead to doing garden furniture, not tables and chairs, more like pillars and decorative items for the garden to make them more interesting. That is what we think right now but it is not a huge focus as everything that we are doing now is so well received so perhaps the word is getting out there. We also have another apprentice on the team, Kieran, who is utilising his social media skills for the business meaning we are reaching different markets that have never experienced slate before. Slate was a well-kept secret but now we are exporting to the USA, Switzerland, and Germany for example. People are ringing us up to say we want your slate, so we envisage that it is a decent time to be in the slate market.
We believe we have influenced that and made a bit of a difference. So that is what we see coming down the track, but we love producing different stuff, and want to continue to accommodate bespoke requests. Something exciting that we are doing now is making clocks, but clocks that specifically relate to this region. We make a Shepherd’s clock, and the numerals are in the Cumbrian dialect, the old sheep counting dialect from one to twelve that I was taught as a little boy. People can buy a clock made from our beautiful slate with the Cumbrian numerals and this is the stuff that excites and drives us. We much more prefer the smaller bespoke orders as opposed to the larger generic orders and we are in a very fortunate position with a full order book so we can continue to choose what we want to work on.
Coniston Stonecraft The Copper House, Mines Beck Coniston LA21 8HQ E info@conistonstonecraft.co.uk N 015394 41236 F conistonstonecraft I conistonstonecrafts T ConistonStone www.conistonstonecrafts.co.uk
Aiming Higher
YOU CAN DONATE TO AIMING HIGHER USING THE FOLLOWING METHODS:
WEBSITE | www.aiminghighercharity.org.uk/donate JUST GIVING | www.justgiving/aiminghigher/donate/ PAYPAL | Found on Aiming Higher website or call to make donations by phone POST | Aiming Higher, 231 – 233 Church Street, Blackpool, Lancashire FY1 3PB. To see more of what we do please visit our website www.aiminghighercharity.org.uk or follow us on facebook @aiminghighercharity, Instagram @aiming_higher_charity or twitter @ahcharity.
Please ring us on 01253 206447/8 for further information.
A-Team’s New Home
This time last year, we reported that Aiming Higher Charity had taken over the running of “The A-Team”, a Youth Group in Blackpool specifically for young people with Autism which has been running for over 16 years.
Autism spectrum disorder or ASD refers to a range of conditions characterised by some degree of impaired social behaviour, communication and language, and a narrow range of interests and activities that are both unique to the individual and carried out repetitively.
Individuals with ASD often present other co-occurring conditions, including epilepsy, depression, anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The level of intellectual functioning in individuals with ASDs is extremely variable, extending from profound impairment to superior levels. At the time the group was running online due to lockdown restrictions but the group are delighted to be back together in real life and with a new base at the Aiming Higher Centre on Church Street, Blackpool. Lockdown had a profound effect on everyone but for these young people who have a tendency to struggle with different social settings and interactions lockdown was especially challenging and had a significant impact on their overall mental health and well-being. Since coming back together in the summer, the A-Team has helped them regain their confidence, giving them the opportunity to practice their social skills and reaffirm friendships. In recent months the group has been out and about trampolining, to see Hairspray at the Winter Gardens, to an ice show at the Pleasure Beach, Laser Quest, Bowling and to see Viva’s Christmas Show. They’ve walked the lights and shared a chippy tea and had a spa day making their own facemasks from essential oils. In February, to celebrate Chinese New Year the group created an array of Chinese dishes which they enjoyed during the session and took home to share with their families.
With the move to their new A-Team Headquarters the group are always looking for more resources and equipment. The young people would love bean bags, a pool table, craft materials and more but like all charities, Aiming Higher saw fund-raising activity decrease in 2020 and 2021. If you can support them in any way possible, any assistance will be gratefully received. Please send your ideas to: heatherholt@ aiminghighercharity.org.uk
THE A-TEAM ENJOY A RANGE OF ACTIVITIES DURING RECENT MEETS
