Things are moving apace now for the newly-formed Institute of Conservation. Following a winter of intense planning and preparation, with the arrival of Springtime comes much good news of progress and growth for the Institute, its members and its public supporters. Firstly, we are very pleased to announce the appointment of the Institute's new Chief Executive, Alastair McCapra. Alastair says: “I am delighted to be joining the Institute of Conservation as its first Chief Executive and am very much looking forward to the challenges of the exciting times ahead. In successfully merging five organisations for the greater good of the profession, I believe Institute members have taken a bold and exceptional step. This tells me there are reserves of energy in the membership as well as a strong desire to raise your game as a profession, and I am very glad to have been entrusted with the task of helping you transform that energy and desire into real, tangible progress”.

Alastair will join us in June from The Royal Society for the Promotion of Health - a multidisciplinary membership organisation of 5000 professionals. His professional background and breadth of experience equip him ideally for this new role, added to which he has a keen empathy with our work and a personal interest in history, the art world and early musical instruments, describing himself as “an appreciative beneficiary of the work which conservators and restorers undertake”. Alastair also dives with sharks - so we have every confidence that he will find the world of conservation and cultural heritage mild by comparison!

In addition to this major step forward, the other corner-stones are now in place for the transition to begin for real, with the founding bodies (the Care of Collections Forum, Institute of Paper Conservation, Photographic Materials Conservation Group, Scottish Society for Conservation and Restoration, United Kingdom Institute for Conservation) starting to join together effectively into the one strong, new organisation that we have all been striving for. The company and charity have been formed, exciting modern premises have been identified in the heart of old London, the designers are gearing up to create a unique, professional image that we can all identify with, the publications board is meeting regularly and the preparatory work to create the new website and database is about to be commissioned. The first meeting of the new Members' Forum will take place on 3 May and this will bring together representatives of the existing specialist, national and regional groups to decide how they want to work together in the future and how they want their voice to be heard throughout the new organisation. The fact that finally there is a single, important focal point in the UK for conservation-related issues has attracted attention and the Institute is already receiving invitations to represent the sector's voice at key events.

Carole Milner, Chair of the Interim Board, Institute of Conservation , March 2005