About us

Icon is a charitable company working to safeguard cultural heritage and the professional membership body for the conservation profession

Icon’s vision is to protect, preserve and promote our treasured cultural heritage through cultivating skilled conservation professionals, supporting meaningful collaboration across the cultural heritage sector, and delivering public benefit through engagement and advocacy.

Icon’s mission is to represent and support the practice and profession of conservation by promoting the public value of caring for cultural heritage and upholding high standards and ethics in conservation practice.

Icon ensures that the guardians and owners of objects, buildings and collections can access knowledgeable and passionate professionals who will help them safeguard the physical remains of our past for the future.

Our Charitable Objects are:

  • To advance the education of the public by research into and the promotion of the conservation of items and collections of items of cultural, aesthetic, historic and scientific value; and
  • To preserve and conserve items and collections of items of cultural, aesthetic, historic and scientific value.

Conservation professionals work in a variety of disciplines. Many are conservators but Icon’s membership of 2,300 individuals and organisations also embraces heritage scientists, craftspeople, architects, archivists and others. Most of our members are UK-based but many also work internationally.

Environmental sustainability

Icon is committed to promoting the positive role that conservation can play in inspiring and informing climate action. We are also actively seeking ways to reduce our organisational carbon footprint and supporting our members to embed environmental sustainability in their professional activities. Further details can be found in our Environmental Statement.

Icon’s Values

We will:

Work with integrity
We are open and honest and do what we believe is best for our shared cultural heritage, the public and our members.

Be inclusive
We value diversity and ensure that opportunities are open to all those who want to care for our heritage.

Be forward-looking and outward-looking
We keep our eyes on the horizon and on the world around us

Be ambitious
Both for our organisation and the things we believe in

Be collaborative and generous
We work with our members and partners to share learning and achieve the best results together

Uphold high standards
We value, support and promote the expertise and professionalism of our members and partners