About Us

Meet the Barley Studio Team

Keith Barley MBE

Director and Accredited Conservator

Keith Barley MBE

Director and Accredited Conservator

Keith is internationally renowned in stained glass conservation. He was awarded an MBE in 2015, in particular for his work at St Mary’s Church, Fairford, the subject of his MA by Research at the University of York in 2017. Keith founded Barley Studio in 1973 after an apprenticeship with the York Glaziers’ Trust.
Keith was the Master of the Worshipful Company of Glaziers for 2017-18, one of the few practising glaziers to be given this honour. He is an ICON accredited conservator (ACR), conservation adviser to the UK Corpus Vitrearum Medii Aevi (CVMA), external assessor for the Register of Architects Accredited in Building Conservation (AABC), Fellow of the British Society of Master Glass Painters (FMGP) and of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust (CF). Keith is Master Glazier for Ely Cathedral and has consulted on many projects both nationally and internationally.

Helen Whittaker MBE

Director and Artist / Designer

Helen Whittaker MBE

Director and Artist / Designer

Helen joined Barley Studio in 1998 and is an award-winning designer and maker of stained glass windows and metal sculpture, directing restoration painting alongside her new design work. Helen is on the pathway to ICON Accreditation (ACR). In 2024 Helen was awarded an MBE for services to stained glass creation and conservation in the Kings Birthday Honours.
Helen is Upper Warden of the Worshipful Company of Glaziers, and Chairs their Education and Training Committee. She is a Fellow of the British Society of Master Glass Painters (FMGP), a Craft Scholar of the Prince’s Foundation, receiving the ‘Hancock Medal’, and a Brother of the Art Workers’ Guild, London. Helen has an MA from the Prince of Wales’s Institute of Architecture, a BA (Hons) from the University of Sunderland, and a Foundation Degree in Business Management (FdA) from Leeds Metropolitan University.

Cassandra Weston

Business Adminstrator

Cassandra Weston

Business Adminstrator

Cassandra joined Barley Studio in 2021 to provide business administration and assist with strategic development. Cassandra previously managed operations for Aesthetica Magazine, one of the UK’s largest art and culture organisations, where she co-ordinated multiple projects including the Aesthetica Art Prize, an international award which has exhibited Turner Prize and Priz Pictet nominees. Cassandra has also project managed for galleries, studios and publishers. She holds a BA(Hons) in Jewellery and Silversmithing from Sir John Cass (London) as well as a Foundation Degree in Business Management (FdA) from Leeds Metropolitan University.

Daniel Thomas

Head Glazier

Daniel Thomas

Head Glazier

Daniel joined the studio in 2002, undertaking a four-year in-house traineeship in all aspects of stained glass. In addition he was awarded NVQ Level 2 in banker stonemasonry through day release at York College, and has attended a Level 1 EAL Introductory Welding Skills course at Askham Bryan College. Dan has been our head glazier since 2006, undertaking glazing, bronze framing and metalwork for creation and conservation projects. Dan is PASMA trained in scaffolding and IPAF trained in the use of mobile elevated work platforms, and is also our Health and Safety representative and trained First Aider.

Alison Gilchrist

Accredited Conservator

Alison Gilchrist

Accredited Conservator

Alison joined the studio in 2011 as a conservator, having previously worked as an academic and colour scientist, and gained ICON Accredited Conservator-Restorer (ACR) status in 2015. Alison is a member of the Stained Glass Committee of the Church Buildings Council, advising on conservation projects and grant funding. Alison received an Ashton Hill award from the Worshipful Company of Glaziers in 2008 towards a placement at Barley Studio, completed her MA in Stained Glass Conservation and Heritage Management at the University of York in 2010, and then undertook a year’s internship at Barley Studio under the ICON-HLF Training Bursaries programme (2010-11). A feature article based on Alison’s MA dissertation work on severe paint loss from nineteenth-century windows is available on Vidimus.

Ali Wysopal

Conservator

Ali Wysopal

Conservator

Ali joined Barley Studio in 2025 on a one-year Kress Foundation Conservation Fellowship. Following her initial training as a glazier, Ali earned her MSc in Historic Preservation from the University of Texas at Austin where she studied architecture conservation and gained additional experience caring for public art, objects, and the built environment. Ali has since completed a post-graduate conservation fellowship at the Metropolitan Museum of Art focused on stained glass, and has worked as a conservator in private practice as well as a project manager for preservation projects in her hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Ali is on the pathway to ICON accreditation (ACR). Ali is a member of the American Institute for Conservation where she volunteers as the Chair of the Architecture Specialty Group and is an active member of the National Heritage Responders.

Brian Baker

Glazier and Fabricator

Brian Baker

Glazier and Fabricator

Brian joined Barley Studio in 2023 as a stained glass fabricator, specialising in glazing and metalwork. Brian completed his apprenticeship as a commercial window fitter, and went on to work for Polytron Glass Australia. This well-recognised company specialises in bespoke glass laminate products for high-end installations including Riviera Yachts. Having relocated to the UK, Brian brings a high level of knowledge and experience of glazing and joinery, and is enjoying developing new skills in metalwork.

Crystal Ma

Technician

Crystal Ma

Technician

Crystal joined Barley Studio in 2025 as a stained glass technician after completing a work placement here as a part of her Thomas J. Watson fellowship. She graduated from Williams College in 2021 with a double major in Biology and Studio Art and then moved to London to pursue more focused study on the material and techniques of traditional arts and crafts, completing her MA at the Kings Foundation School of Traditional Arts.

Hayden Ashby

Technician

Hayden Ashby

Technician

Hayden joined Barley Studio in 2026 as a stained glass technician. He read Viking Studies at Nottingham University and subsequently taught history and archaeology. He has a strong interest in heritage crafts, including early medieval metalworking and silversmithing, and is now embracing the art and craft of stained glass. In his spare time Hayden delivers sword skills workshops, and works as an extra for film and television.