It's a scary question, I know, but before we get into the current situation that gives rise to the title of this article, I think it is probably best to provide you with an understanding of the history of leather tanning education.

No one can say for sure when leather tanning was first invented, but it is generally accepted that whilst humans have been using animal skin in crafts for thousands and thousands of years, tanning was first discovered in the middle east c.2,500 years ago (1). The art of tanning was adapted and honed over the centuries, and various cultures adopted and expanded upon it. Leather was found to be an extremely versatile material, and the demand for it soared, making tanning one of the most valuable skills that humanity acquired as we developed.

The crest of The Worshipful Company of Leathersellers (10)

 

In the Middle Ages, The Worshipful Company of Leathersellers was incorporated in the City of London with an aim of regulating their craft, preventing dishonest practices, and setting a new standard for leather that they could train new workers in. With the expansion of both the domestic industry outside of the City of London, and of global trade, the Livery Companies suffered and deviated from their roots, basically becoming social clubs for their members. In the late 19th century, Leathersellers was one of the Livery Companies who, after a public enquiry into their operations and value in modern society, joined together to found The City and Guilds of London Institute for the Advancement of Technical Education. This here was the formal start of technical training and education here in the United Kingdom (2).

The Borough Polytechnic, where Herold's Institute was based (11)

 

Through the City & Guilds the Leathersellers set up training at Herold's Institute, in the form of evening classes that ran for years, training students in different aspects of leather manufacture. The success of these classes even led to the creation of a research scholarship. The Leathersellers, however, dreamt bigger, and in 1909 they opened their new technical college. This college was the largest leather tanning training facility in the world, and by far the best equipped facility (3). It attracted students from around the world, and due to its resounding success, it was expanded further in the 50s by the Minister for Education.

The current premises of The Institute for Creative Leather Technology

 

It was decided in the 70s that it was better to centralise Leather Education, and in '77 the Leathersellers' College merged with a course at Leeds University and Northampton's Nene College. The London College and the Leeds course were closed, and Nene opened the Department of Leather Manufacture in the new National Leathersellers Centre, a modern facility built and outfitted by the Leathersellers. By 2005, Nene college had become the University of Northampton, and in the coming years the leather department was rebranded as The Institute for Creative Leather Technology (ICLT), the world leader in both leather education, and leather research (4). The Leathersellers still greatly support leather education to this day, sponsoring ICLT scholarships and helping to fund the move to a new campus, and a new custom built tannery education building, just 5 years ago. They are not alone in this, as the department is greatly supported by various chemical companies and tanning machinery suppliers, who helped outfit the new building with state-of-the-art machinery.

As many of you reading this will know, Hewits celebrated our 200th anniversary last year. As such, it is understandable that the history of both Hewits and my family is closely entwined with that of the educational offerings that have been available here. My great, great uncle, Hewit Lawson, attended the Herold's Institute in 1908. My grandad, George Barlee, attended the Leathersellers College in 1950. His nephew, William McLean, attended the Leathersellers College in its final year, joining the new department at Nene College in its inception year. My dad, Roger Barlee, attended Nene College in 1985. For the past few years, I have been undertaking various courses and modules at the ICLT, both remote and in person.

As is the case with tanneries, not only in this country but worldwide, Hewits would not be here today without the training and expertise given to us throughout the last century from these technical institutions. There is nowhere in the world that can offer what the ICLT can offer, passing a 2015 audit with flying colours and boasting a 100% employability record (5). The research that is undertaken there has been crucial to the development and future of not only leather allied industries, but the likes of medicine too (6).

Reading all of this you may now be a bit confused on how we get to our title - it sounds like leather education in this country is stronger than ever! Unfortunately, the last decade saw a sudden downturn in the department, with record low student numbers, and a botched move to the new campus. It is not just one problem that has caused this, but a series of unfortunate events: Brexit and the now much harsher visa rules and costs imposed upon international students, who made up a large proportion of the department and University at large; Covid lockdowns and the economic uncertainty that it brought; the rising tensions worldwide pushing up costs of materials and utilities; and the gradual decline of the leather industry due to cheaper alternatives.

In the background to all of this, the ICLT was practically abandoned at the University's old campus by the University. Original plans, including provisions for the Museum of Leather Craft & the Leather Conservation Centre which had been a feature on the old campus, were reversed, and after scrambling and temporary solutions, the new building was finally sorted, but later than the rest of the University (7). There has been a feeling in the industry that the University wanted rid of the department, and many felt that the writing was on the wall after Rachel Garwood, the Director, was made redundant, and the ICLT began being overseen by the fashion department (8).

In October of last year, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Northampton started a consultation period on the future of the ICLT, and in December announced the decision that it was closing the centre (9). To say that this blow was felt throughout the leather industry is an understatement. The Leathersellers have lost the institution they financed and helped create; the machinery and chemical companies worldwide who supported and outfitted the University feel cheated; the industry has lost their main facility to train future generations of leather technicians; the staff who poured so much of themselves into the department for years have been given notice of redundancy; and the students who are currently attending have had their education thrown into disarray. Nearly a year after the announcement the University is still not being clear about how they are going to protect the final year group of students, and with the facility closing next summer, a year before they are due to graduate, time is running out for them to formalise the plan.

The final intake of students to the ICLT

 

Despite this, I feel extremely lucky to be a part of the final year of students at the ICLT, even if I am just a 'part time' member. For the past year, I have been making the long journey from Edinburgh down to Northampton to attend all of the practical sessions that are part of the BSc for Leather Technology - I'm not a proper student, and I won't get a degree at the end of it, but I'm getting the knowledge and training needed to continue Hewits for another generation.

Whilst it has felt like quite a bit of upheaval to my life, spending 10 weeks down there if you add it up, I have found it to be an extremely rewarding experience. Not only do I feel that I have learned a lot, and I understand more about the science of what is happening here in our tannery, but it has been great to get to be a part of the leather community. Hewits is a small tannery, and supplying such a niche market we aren't generally mixing with anyone else in the industry other than Marc Lamb at Harmatan (not that we don't enjoy seeing him!), so it was a bit of a culture shock to suddenly be surrounded by people who knew what I was talking about -normally I get weird looks when I say I'm a leather tanner!

The loss of the ICLT weighs heavily on everyone there, and there are genuine worries about what will happen come summer when the building closes. There will be 5 remaining students waiting to complete the third year of their studies, but without proper facilities or teaching provisions as it stands - when I started last year there was 6 teaching staff, and this is now down to 3. You can't blame the lecturers who have left for other jobs, as their only other option is to wait around come redundancy and then hope they can get something quickly, which is not guaranteed.

The industry did try to stop the University's decision, but any efforts fell on deaf ears. It is fair to say there is a bit of uncertainty about the next steps. There are still some training courses in other countries, and some large tanneries are able to complete in house training - Scottish Leather Group in Bridge of Weir, the UK's largest leather manufacturer, opened an apprenticeship training academy in 2012 which has since recruited over 100 apprentices (12).

After the announcement from the University last year, a new group has come about - Supporters of Leather Education and Science (SOLES). This group, organised by Dr Christine Anscombe (SATRA), Deborah Taylor (Sustainable Leather Foundation) and Stephen Trantum (Trumpler), aim to preserve and protect the integrity of formal leather education and training. Initial discussions centred on ICLT rescue attempts, and since then have moved on to collaborating with individuals and organisations worldwide to see if there can be an attempt at creating a globally recognised curriculum, that can be delivered both online and in person. Whilst promising, there is still much to do before anything concrete is formalised with the SOLES initiative.

So here we are, facing the first lack of formal technical training in leather manufacture in over 100 years. Is this the end of UK based leather education?

A joint trip of the first year BSc students & the MSc students from the ICLT to Italy in May, Funded by the TFL Group

 

 

References:
1. https://www.britannica.com/topic/leather
2. https://leathersellers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Leathersellers-Short-History-Hi-Res.pdf
3. https://www.greshamsociety.org/webinar/11685/
4. https://northampton.epexio.com/records/ICLT/01/Edu
5. https://internationalleathermaker.com/audit-confirms-high-standard-of-courses-at-iclt/
6. https://www.northampton.ac.uk/research/research-institutes-and-centres/institute-for-creative-leather-technologies/iclt-research-and-enterprise/
7. https://internationalleathermaker.com/this-is-not-the-end-of-leather-education/
8. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rachel-garwood-7925781b_leather-employment-recruitment-activity-6830830733083459584-sdfe/
9. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-67756113#:~:text=Opened%20in%202019%2C%20the%20Institute,closure%20and%20urged%20a%20rethink
10. https://leathersellers.co.uk/
11. https://www.lsbu.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/9227/past-present-future.pdf
12. https://www.scottishleathergroup.com/slgacademy