Heritage conference (Hertfordshire)

Paulette McAllister is a Heritage and Place Strategist with over 30 years’ experience in the built environment and Founder and Managing Director of Joseph Hardy & Company Ltd. She advocates for heritage as the foundational layer for shaping sustainable, resilient and connected communities.

Paulette has extensive experience supporting local authorities as a Place Advisor and Consultee. Widely respected for her collaborative and cross-disciplinary approach, she works across regeneration, planning and heritage to embed long-term social, cultural and environmental value into development.

The Feminine Thread® is her evolving body of research exploring heritage, identity and human connection to place. Paulette is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Vice Chair of the Essex Quality Review Panel.

Karl Kropf is a Senior Lecturer in Urban Design and Historic Conservation at Oxford Brookes University and Director of Built Form Resource, an urban design and heritage consultancy. With over 30 years’ international experience across urban design, architecture, landscape and conservation, his work bridges academic research and professional practice. Karl is a leading expert in urban morphology, focusing on understanding the form and evolution of places and applying this knowledge to planning, design, and regeneration. He is Associate Editor of the journal Urban Morphology and author of The Handbook of Urban Morphology, and is widely recognised for advancing practical approaches to integrating historic environments into contemporary development.

Robert Sakul is a heritage specialist and Director at Ash Sakula Architects, with extensive experience in architecture, conservation, and the delivery of thoughtful, context-led design. His work focuses on the sensitive integration of new development within historic environments, ensuring that heritage is both respected and reinterpreted to meet contemporary needs. With a strong emphasis on collaboration and design quality, Robert brings valuable insight into how heritage-led approaches can shape resilient, characterful places and support successful planning outcomes.

Emma Healey is a heritage consultant at JB Heritage with a strong track record in advising on the conservation and management of historic environments. She specialises in assessing heritage significance and supporting the integration of heritage considerations into planning and development proposals. Emma works closely with clients, local authorities, and design teams to deliver balanced, evidence-based solutions that enable change while safeguarding historic character, bringing a practical and collaborative approach to heritage-led decision-making.

Laura Levitt is the Principal Conservation and Urban Design Officer at East Hertfordshire District Council, where she works on protecting East Hertfordshire’s historic environment and ensuring positive urban design outcomes in heritage contexts. With extensive experience in heritage management from the private, charitable and public sectors, she is well versed in managing change in the historic environment. She is particularly focused on ensuring that heritage assets are fully appreciated and maintained with opportunities to better reveal their significance utilised.  She believes that new development should draw upon its unique historic context in order to create distinctive and well considered places which will stand the test of time.

Tineke Rennie is Senior Conservation Officer at East Hertfordshire District Council, where she plays a key role in conserving and enhancing the district’s historic environment. With extensive experience in heritage management, townscape, and planning, she advises on development proposals affecting heritage, securing change that positively responds to significance and local identity. Tineke brings an in-depth understanding of the important role of heritage and design principles in achieving high-quality, sustainable, heritage and context-led, outcomes in all aspects of placemaking.