TEAM

London Historic Buildings Trust is London’s only city-wide building preservation trust. Since 1992, we’ve been specialising in heritage-led regeneration to save at-risk historic buildings to benefit communities across London. From affordable housing to innovative workspaces, to healthcare sites and community spaces, we’ve created new places across the city which unify today’s communities with the special buildings of the past.

London Historic Buildings Trust is the lead delivery organisation for the Petticoat Lane Heritage Trail.

make:good is an east London-based socially engaged design and architecture studio working to involve people in shaping neighbourhood change across London. They use their creative expertise to co-design local solutions, as well as harnessing local assets, building relationships and supporting communities to create lasting social infrastructure.

Streets of Growth is a youth intervention charity based in the Petticoat Lane area on Middlesex Street. The charity works with local young people to offer employment and training opportunities in the creative industries to support violence and harm reduction. Streets of Growth have partnered with London Historic Buildings Trust on previous projects in the area, a relationship which is highly valued.

Project delivery team

Katherine Findlay,

Project Manager

Katherine Findlay is an experienced and creative heritage project manager who works mainly with historic buildings, landscapes and archives. She has been developing and managing heritage projects for nearly twenty years, at sites ranging from Bronze Age hill forts to Second World War airfields.

Laura Owen,
Project Officer and Oral Historian

Laura Owen is an independent Oral Historian and Project Manager and led the day-to-day delivery of the Petticoat Lane Heritage Trail project. Laura has a background in heritage engagement, and has delivered numerous oral history and community heritage projects with a range of audiences and participants across the UK. She is passionate about sharing everyday stories to foster relationships and empathy between communities in the UK. Laura also specialises in creatively sharing oral histories through exhibitions, digital resources, and audio formats such as podcasts and soundscapes.

Susan Skedd,

Archive Research Mentor

Dr Susan Skedd is a London-based historian who divides her time between working for the English Heritage blue plaques scheme and freelancing for a range of heritage projects, including the Petticoat Lane Heritage Trail. She learned her trade researching girls’ education in 18th century Britain, then joined the staff of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Throughout her career Susan has been drawn to researching the lesser-known aspects of our history and those which are taken for granted. She relishes the opportunities to communicate these stories in ways that engage and challenge people’s preconceptions about the past.

Maria Andrews,

Photographer

Maria Andrews was born in Stepney and is a freelance photographer, videographer and historical researcher based in Tower Hamlets. Maria is currently studying for a PhD on the east End photographer, Harry Diamond. She holds the first collaborative studentship between the National Portrait Gallery and Central Saint Martins School of Art and is curious to hear from anyone in the borough who knew or met Harry Diamond.

Jasper Sutherland,

Lead Designer

Jasper is an associate and Senior 2D Designer at make:good and led the co-design workshops for both the temporary and permanent trail. He has worked on numerous engagement and public realm improvements projects where he has delivered engaging participatory workshops and then translated this work into semi-permanent and permanent interventions in the public realm.

Dan Cruikshank

Historian

Dan Cruickshank is an architectural historian, a resident of Spitalfields since the late 1970s, a trustee of the Spitalfields Historic Buildings Trust, and author of 'Spitalfields: the History of a Nation in a Handful of Streets’, published by Random House in 2016.

Local Researchers

Archive Research

Dani C

Dani C is a community researcher and project co-ordinator. Dani is enthusiastic about local history and has familial links to the Aldgate area that span many decades.

Eliza Islam

Born and raised in East London, Eliza was always interested in the Petticoat Lane's rich history. She was a Community Appraiser pilot project in 2022 when she surveyed the area and consulted on how the area should be developed to support the local community. Eliza currently works in the third sector. She has experience in research, particularly peer-led research with local communities as well as outreach and communications. Eliza is currently studying an MA in Gender Studies and Law at SOAS.

Mark Magidson

Mark’s great-great grandfather Joseph Palkowski arrived in 1886, opening a costermonger’s at Old Castle Street. His son Mark founded Marks of the Lane Jewish deli in 1941, famed for smoked salmon and herring, trading until the 1990s. Mark worked there as a boy before becoming a 3D designer for the Natural History Museum and later a freelance exhibition designer. He now focuses on creating sculptural Memory Icons inspired by the Wentworth Street area.

Natalie Matcham

Studying in Aldgate with LMU, Natalie felt deeply connected to Petticoat Lane, because her grandparents grew up in the area. While the area around the lane became her academic home, Natalie continued to enjoy exploring various elements of its social history and was delighted to be able to join the project. Natalie currently works as a freelance creative and cosmetic horological restoration specialist.

Photography

Shuma Begum
Employability Programme Manager at Streets of Growth

Abu Tahmid

"My name is Abu Tahmid, and I participated in the Petticoat Lane Heritage Trail project as a Young Photographer. My involvement allowed me to grow in the area and deepen my understanding of its history, which I found incredibly engaging. Through this experience, I gained professional experience using a camera to capture and document the rich history of Petticoat Lane. I am currently studying level 2 electrical installation qualification and working towards being a qualified electrician."

Zahrah Rashid

"I’m a gap year student planning to study Nutrition at university. I joined the project to connect with the local community and learn more about its rich culture and heritage. Through this experience, I gained insight into the area’s diverse food traditions, clothing and landmarks. The project introduced me to photography techniques such as exposure, lighting, and lens use which has sparked my interest in photography as a personal hobby."

Oral History

Aishah Siddiqua

Trainee Oral Historian

Nasrat Tania

Trainee Oral Historian

Steering Group

Thank you to our Steering Group made up of people living and working in the area, those with a historic connection to Petticoat Lane, and local stakeholders.