Rebecca Hayton

Rebecca Hayton is Preventive Conservator at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds.

Rebecca graduated from the University of Lincoln in 2015 with a BA (Hons) in Conservation and Restoration, having wanted to combine her interest of history with practical skills. As part of the course Rebecca undertook a placement at Leeds Museum Discovery Centre, gaining experience and knowledge of interventive treatments on a variety of materials, preventive conservation and health and safety procedures.

After graduating, Rebecca accepted a position with The Landi Company based at Burghley House in Stamford. During this four-month contract she conserved numerous embroidered motifs in preparation for their fixture onto new curtains to be displayed in the Black and Yellow Bedroom at Burghley House.

In 2015, Rebecca Hayton was given the opportunity to gather further experience through a Conservation Traineeship with the Royal Armouries, Leeds Museums and Galleries and the University of Leeds. This year long traineeship allowed her to gain experience in all aspects of conservation while working in the professional environment of a museum. During this time, Rebecca also obtained a PG Certificate in Museum and Gallery Studies.

Since finishing her traineeship in 2016, Rebecca regularly volunteered within the conservation department at the Royal Armouries, aiding with interventive treatments and continuing to hone her skills.

In October 2017, Rebecca Hayton was appointed Interim Preventive Conservator at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds and was appointed as Preventive Conservator in November 2019. Since her appointment she has implemented a new open display cleaning programme and continued with regular monitoring, amongst many other responsibilities, to help preserve the nation’s collection of arms and armour.