Daedalus Conservation, also styled Dædalus Conservation, specialises in the repair and conservation of historic buildings. Based in Melbury Osmond, Dorset, and presented within the RW Armstrong group of brands, it brings together conservation contracting, traditional building trades and the detailed treatment of historic materials and decorative surfaces.
The business works as a principal contractor or specialist contractor, supporting building owners and professional teams with practical repairs, investigations and pre-contract advice. Its published service range includes stonemasonry, carpentry and joinery, plasterwork, brickwork and terracotta, roofing and leadwork, fine conservation and consultancy.
Daedalus offers the coordination and delivery of conservation works alongside individual specialist packages. Its services include surveys, condition reports, advice on proposed repairs and the programming of work. This combination is relevant where a project brings together structural repairs, traditional craft work and the protection of significant finishes.
Its documented portfolio includes country houses, churches and major heritage sites. Project scope, the specialist team and the division of responsibilities between contractor, architect, engineer and conservator should be agreed for each commission.
The published masonry service encompasses stone carving, finely dressed ashlar, rubble masonry, walling, structural repair and surface consolidation. Associated activities include repointing, grouting, shelter coats, cleaning, stone sourcing and matching, condition surveys and non-destructive inspection.
Daedalus also advertises repairs to brick, flint, chert, ragstone and terracotta. Its brickwork capabilities include matching historic materials, arranging reproduction components, rubbed brickwork, and structural repairs using appropriate anchoring, tying and stitching.
Carpentry and joinery services range from on-site repair and conservation to new bespoke components. The advertised capabilities include heavy oak framing, structural timber repairs and strengthening, replacement of missing or damaged sections, sash-window overhaul, carving and traditional finishes.
The service also extends to design development, construction-detail drawings, manufacture and installation. This allows enquiries to address both the repair of surviving timber and carefully detailed new work within an existing building.
Daedalus's plasterwork services cover plain and decorative finishes, including lime plasters and renders, solid-run and fibrous work, freehand modelling, pattern and mould making, and the consolidation of existing surfaces.
Its published specialisms also include cob, wattle and daub, pargetting and scagliola. Analysis and plaster matching are offered to help establish suitable repair materials and methods for the particular background and surviving finish.
The fine-conservation service encompasses sculpture, monuments, memorials, wall paintings and plaster-ceiling stabilisation. Daedalus describes work with stone, timber, ceramics, painted decoration, plaster and metals, together with cleaning and consolidation of plain and decorative building surfaces.
Condition surveys, materials analysis and environmental monitoring are included in the published service range. These activities complement the building trades where the significance of a project lies in its finishes and details as well as its structure.
Consultancy services include condition reporting, recording, opening-up investigations, trials, samples and cost assessments. Daedalus also advertises the preparation of workmanship and materials specifications, and quantified schedules for specialist elements of a project.
These services are intended to assist owners, custodians, local authorities and professional design teams in developing a defined repair programme before the main works begin.
The National Trust identifies Daedalus as the specialist contractor for its Saving the Staircases project, with site work beginning in January 2026. Published updates describe investigations, full-size templates for structural steel components, repairs to historic plasterwork and preparation for new supports. This is an example of coordinated structural intervention and fabric conservation; the cited updates do not establish completion of the whole project.
RW Armstrong's project record describes Daedalus's conservation work for the National Trust at Cliveden. The South Terrace paving was recorded and relaid to its original irregular pattern, with additional repairs to the ferneries, stonework and gilded details.
Westminster Abbey identifies Daedalus as the specialist builder responsible for restoration work completed in 2020. The project included carefully removing tower masonry to replace corroded ironwork, then reinstating the stone or replacing damaged pieces.
Daedalus Conservation is listed as a corporate member of the Building Limes Forum. This is organisational membership, not conservation accreditation or an endorsement of individual commissions.
The business publishes a UK-wide project remit from its Dorset base. Availability, the current scope of specialist services and the proposed project team should be confirmed directly.
Published contact address:
Higher Barn, Holt Mill
Melbury Osmond
Dorset DT2 0XL
Telephone: 01935 83923
Email: info@daedalusconservation.co.uk
Website: www.daedalusconservation.co.uk
| Services & Expertise | |
|---|---|
| Principal Areas of Work: | Historic building conservation, Principal conservation contracting, Specialist conservation contracting, Stonemasonry, Traditional carpentry and joinery, Lime plasterwork, Decorative plaster conservation, Brickwork and terracotta repairs, Roofing and leadwork, Fine conservation, Conservation surveys and consultancy |
| Capabilities and Specialisms: | Historic masonry consolidation, Stone sourcing and matching, Repointing and grouting, Structural masonry repairs, Heavy oak framing, Structural timber repairs, Sash-window repair, Bespoke joinery, Plaster analysis and matching, Fibrous and solid-run plasterwork, Cob and wattle and daub, Pargetting and scagliola, Sculpture and memorial conservation, Wall painting conservation, Plaster-ceiling stabilisation, Materials analysis, Pre-contract trials and samples |
| Accreditations, Certifications & Memberships : | Building Limes Forum — Corporate Member |
| Accreditation & Membership Details: | Daedalus Conservation appears in the Building Limes Forum's corporate membership directory. |
| Contact & Online Presence | |
| Email: | info@daedalusconservation.co.uk |
| Business Details & Assurance | |
| Company Number: | 07826495 |
| Public Liability Insurance: | Yes |
| Professional Indemnity Insurance: | Yes |
