1,000 years of talent. That's what's coming to Lincoln this month as the city hosts the bi-annual conference of the international Preservation Trades Network, an umbrella voice for heritage skills across the world an event which only comes to Europe once every four years.

Lincoln is set to be a popular destination for the conference's artisans and craftspeople, as will the Cathedral's Works Department, one of the most renowned in the UK, and a breeding ground for the next generation of stonemasons, joiners, lead work specialists and stained glass restorers.

Each of these traditional crafts are under threat as modern building materials and techniques overtake time-honoured methods.

That's why the Cathedral's Works Department and Lincolnshire County Council have also teamed up with Lincoln Castle to create an event for members of the public, enabling craftspeople to demonstrate their skills to a wider audience too.

The event will also celebrate recently obtained cash for a new Heritage Skills Centre funded by European and regional funds within the Castle grounds which will run workshops to train stone masons, stained glass experts and lime mortar craftsmen.

"We wanted to hold a 'public face' of the Preservation Trades Network Conference." says 1,000 Years event's co-organiser Mary Powell.

"It's a way to demonstrate a wide variety of skills with demonstrations, workshops, talks and have-a-go sessions for children."

The event will take place in the Cathedral, its Works Department and in Lincoln Castle too. The latter will see prison cells requisitioned as studios to house makers of beeswax candles, jewellery, chairs, plus those from the spinning, weaving and dyeing guild and lace-making industries.

There will be around 46 exhibitors in the castle alone, including nine in the basement floor of the prison building.

The Heritage Skills Centre is being constructed adjacent to the prison, and will be completed by September 2012. The single storey building will feature a glass front so that visitors to the Castle will be able to see the craftspeople inside working - but whilst the centre itself is a little over a year away from completion, its first three apprentices will start work this month, within the Cathedral's Work Department.

Experts will attend the PTN conference from around the world, but Lincolnshire itself will be extremely well-represented at the 1,000 years event on the Saturday. Craftspeople such as Spalding's Gillian Wing will be demonstrating stained glass and copper foiling, Kirton-in-Lindsey's Val Hughes demonstrates making beeswax candles, and Lincoln's Liz Rance demonstrates tapestry weaving.

Within the grounds of the Castle will be blacksmithing, dry stone walling, masonry, roofing & brickwork, plus coppicing, willow work and rush seating experts.

Among the Lincolnshire experts demonstrating their crafts in the grounds of the Castle, will be Alison Walling of Lincoln Willow and Martyn Underwood of Generation Thatchers and Mike Ashton, the Branston man who will demonstrate wood turning as part of his chair-making craft.

"It's great that the council is keeping heritage crafts alive." says Alison. "I first heard about the event when one of the team contacted me and expressed an interest in Lincoln's willow interest group."

Originally from the Midlands and with 10 years of basket making experience under her belt, Alison still considers herself a trainee. Her original background was in the arts, and she received a bursary to study the craft after working as a tree warden.

"The event will also raise awareness of the Heritage Skills Centre which would have supported me ten years ago." she says.

Based in the grounds of the Castle, Alison and her colleagues will be demonstrating the art of creating willow baskets and architectural sculptures from coppiced willow, and hopes to revitalise their craft.

Whilst the art itself is thousands of years old, Lincolnshire's willow industry waned seriously in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Also in the grounds of the Castle will be Charlie Slade and Kate Tiler, from just over the border in Leicestershire, who will be providing children with the opportunity to have a go at wattle-and-daub, Tudor plaster work and medieval tiling.

The Cathedral's Nave, meanwhile, will offer various heritage craft skill training, along with national organisations involved with heritage buildings: English Heritage, The National Trust, The Princes Foundation to name a few. The Cathedral Flower Ladies will be offering flower arranging demonstrations with an opportunity to 'have a go.' Printing, bookbinding, calligraphy will be on offer in the Wren Library, and there will demonstrations of how the Cathedral bells and an organ works.

Joe Picalli from Conservation Solutions will be abseiling down the Central Tower, weather permitting, and there will be a climbing wall by the West Front to enable ambitious children and adults to do the same.

The event came about after Carol Heidschuster, Works Manager for the Cathedral's Works team visited a meeting of the PTN in the US in August 2009.

Carol suggested the group - a charitable organisation which aims to keep the skills of conservators and craftspeople alive - use Lincoln for their symposium, attending two days of lectures at the Lawn in Lincoln, which will then form a precursor to the public event, too.

An additional feature of the day will be a Tastes of Lincolnshire farmer's market in Castle Square, the grounds of the Castle and Exchequergate, which will give precedence to local producers of meat, cheese and other Lincolnshire produce.

Pete Welbourne of Welbourne's Bakery in Navenby will be demonstrating the art of breadmaking, whilst cookery demonstrations by Debbie Kenyon will also take place in Castle Square.

Burton Road's Museum of Lincolnshire Life and Ellis Mill will also be open on the day to encourage visitors to make the most of uphill Lincoln.

"The day is designed to showcase all of the traditional talent and skills we have right here in Lincolnshire." says Mary, who also champions Tastes of Lincolnshire in the county.

The event opens the Cathedral's Works Department up to members of the public - which is significant in itself - see stonemasons, carpenter/joiners, stained glass conservators at work - view a scaled model of a section of the Cathedral roof, and watch a demonstration of how centring for building an arch works.

"Demonstration is absolutely key to the event." says Mary. "Being able to watch people work, to ask them questions and to have a go yourself before seeing the finished result will make the experience really rich for everyone who visits."