Starting date: 1 September 2011
This four month correspondence course provides an introduction for people with little (for instance lower school chemistry studied years ago) or no chemistry.
The syllabus is aimed at major conservation issues: e.g. types of materials, the environment, cleaning and deterioration and is divided into four blocks:
1.An "Introduction" to chemical explanations of the physical world uses materials of common experience, air and water.
2."First principles" carries this further and explains the new language of chemistry.
3. "Chemistry in action" samples the chemistry of materials that are of use in conservation.
4. "Chemistry and the conservator", applies the knowledge gained in the previous blocks to your work.
The course can provide a good background for those wishing to enter training courses in conservation (indeed several conservation training establishments recommend this course to potential students with inappropriate chemistry qualifications).