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Heritage Roofing
Heritage roofing - maintaining our iconic buildings
The UK is home to some of the most iconic buildings in the world, from stunning churches and cathedrals to historic stately homes. Each and every one of these remarkable feats of architecture requires regular maintenance to ensure they remain in the very best condition, allowing them to be enjoyed for generations.
Cathedral Care
Restoration and upkeep of cathedrals
There are some 42 Anglican cathedrals in the UK, not to mention 20 or so Catholic cathedrals. Cathedrals form the most important collection of historic buildings in England. The largest and most ancient are internationally famous, the smallest are usually among the most significant buildings in their region and even the most recent are architectural masterpieces.
Master Craftsmen
Championing our heritage with modern craftsmanship
Twenty years ago, English Heritage (now Historic England) published its first-ever Register of Buildings at Risk across England, which featured nearly 2,000 buildings and monuments that were ‘neglected, broken and unloved’. Recently Historic England was delighted to announce that over two-thirds of those buildings were now safe, in both urban and rural areas right across the country.
Traditional Lime
Lime: it’s better for buildings – and for the environment
It is now fairly well known that cement is not good for old buildings and that lime mortar should be used. But why? What are the advantages and what are the disadvantages? In order to begin to answer those questions it is necessary to understand the nature of traditional building, the process by which buildings used to be built, and how it differs from modern construction, the process by which we build today.
Audio Visual
Audio visual equipment in church buildings
This guidance is issued by the Church Buildings Council under section 55(1)(d) of the Dioceses, Mission and Pastoral Measure 2007. As it is statutory guidance, it must be considered with great care. The standards of good practice set out in the guidance should not be departed from unless the departure is justified by reasons that are spelled out clearly, logically and convincingly.
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CRE Events
Exhibitors enthuse over the CRE experience
By 4pm on the first day of CRE 24 at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, exhibitors Chris and Kim Dunphy had already had so many helpful and detailed conversations with visitors that they were “completely talked out”.
Insurance
You need to ensure that reasonable precautions are in place at your church to keep it safe for those who use it. To do this, you need to think about what might cause harm to people.
You will then need to decide if the precautions already in place are adequate. If they are not, you may need to identify further action to prevent any danger. When done formally, this is known as a risk assessment.
Church Maintenance
Church maintenance and repair: Calendar of Care
Just as prevention is always better than cure, maintenance is preferable to major repairs. But, such repairs may not always be avoidable. Church Care offers a monthly guide in our coming issues Starting in Spring
We can help you understand the common problems and areas that need your special attention, and give you tips for regular maintenance schemes.
Pest Control
Michael Palin warns of pest threat to churches
Michael Palin is supporting the future of the UK’s historic churches and chapels with a voiceover for a new animated film. The 80 second animation, produced for the National Churches Trust, highlights why churches are some of the nation’s best loved buildings.
Town Halls
The history of the great Victorian Town Halls of Northern England
From industrial squalor to civic pride, the story behind some of the most impressive buildings of the North involve a unique mix of economics, grand designs and noble sentiments within communities.
Lead Roofing
Lead is one of the oldest materials in the roofing industry and is still commonly used throughout the world today.
Lead roofing is a traditional roofing method which has been used in the industry for hundreds of years, and is therefore proven to be extremely reliable. Lead roofing, and sand-cast lead, in particular is ideal for old buildings such as churches or historical renovations, whereas milled lead roofing is a mass-produced alternative, used for precision and accuracy in homes and commercial buildings alike.
Lightning Protection
When lightning strikes are you protected against this act of God?
The issue of lightning protection in churches is one that has exercised this publication for many years. In this four-part series of spotlights on the issue we will be revisiting various aspects of the subject, beginning with an overview of current thinking.
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Restoration of London Oratory's Sacrament House
Ecclesiastical objects are some of the most rewarding for restorers to work on. Most are still in use, meaning that the work carried out not only prolongs their use, but also becomes an important part of the object’s history. So says Spencer Cane, founder and principal of Cane and Davis, a gilding and restoration company based in central London.
Cane and Davis specialises in the conservation and restoration of gilded surfaces and painted objects, and the replacement of both carved and composition ornament.
Zinc bullseye dormers for Wallace Collection
VMZINC has supplied zinc bullseye dormers for the roof of the Wallace Collection in Paddington.
Pre-weathered Quartz-zinc® standing seam was selected with lightwell projections also clad in zinc to provide an unobtrusive blend within the roofscape. The muted grey colour is similar to lead and blends well with the roof’s natural slates.
Reggiani helps to enlighten St Clements, Hastings
A project to upgrade the lighting at St Clements Church in Hastings has made extensive use of Narancia, Varios and Bisio luminaires from Reggiani. The luminaires were specified by building services engineers CB Associates for their ability to complement the church’s architecture while contributing to reduced lifecycle costs.
Conservation of Period Property
The leaded lights shown here were the only original windows remaining in a farm house building built in 1676. The green tint of the glass in these lights is due to it being broadsheet glass, which was the cheaper production method of the 17th century, as opposed to crown glass.
Burnt church is great loss to our rich national heritage
The loss of a historic church which was destroyed by a fire - thought to have been caused by lightning earlier this week - (20 October 2013) is a tragic and irreplaceable loss to our heritage and culture, The Churches Conservation Trust said today.
St George’s Church in Goltho, Lincolnshire was beloved by John Betjeman and built on an old settlement long since lost. The name 'Goltho’ is said to be Saxon for 'where the marigolds grow’. Inside, the Tudor church was an atmosphere of calm and simplicity, with rustic wooden pews, an altar screen and a simple two-decker pulpit.
Royal Albert Hall - most prestigious terracotta new build for years
As one of the country's finest and most loved Grade 1 listed buildings, Shaws of Darwen were chosen to be the only company with the experience, expertise and capacity to carry out what must be the largest and most prestigious terracotta new build project for many years.
The brief was to recreate a new south porch which would replicate the existing terracotta to the very highest of standards.
English Heritage at The Engine House – Selectaglaze awarded return ticket
In 1840, Daniel Gooch, the young locomotive superintendent of the Great Western Railway (GWR) wrote to Isambard Kingdom Brunel recommending Swindon as the location for a much-needed engine works. His letter stated that the then tiny hilltop town had ‘the great advantage of being on the side of a canal communicating with the whole of England, by which we could get coal and coke’. Just four years later, the GWR Central Engine Station was a reality.
£1.4m Lottery Funding for Gwynedd’s Culture and Heritage
The oldest intact Bishop’s Palace in Wales is to be revived and opened as a new art gallery and museum thanks to a £1.4m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). The funding awarded to Gwynedd Council in partnership with Bangor University will assist the creation of a new ‘culture quarter’ in Bangor, with the city’s Bishop’s Palace at its heart.
Anglesey’s heritage is in safe hands
Menter Mon is the body that promotes the unique heritage of Anglesey – or Ynys Mon – as an underutilised resource. It operates out of the Grade Two-listed former Town Hall in Llangefni, now a Social Enterprise Centre, which was officially opened in February following an extensive restoration programme led by Menter Mon.
Princes of Gwynedd crowned first strand of pan-Wales interpretation
Visitors to Snowdonia will now be able to follow in the footsteps of the princes of Gwynedd for the first time, thanks to a new heritage tourism scheme launched today (14 October 2013) at Dinas Emrys, the mythological home of the Welsh Dragon.
New technology shows its mettle with latest Scrap Metal Dealer Act
Tackling the pressing problem of metal theft made a step change on 1st October when the newly overhauled Scrap Metal Dealers Act came into force. The loss of lead, in particular, frequently costs insurers many times more than the face value of the metal because of damage incurred to buildings.
However, one of the problems is that insurers have long been reluctant to foot the bill for the damage caused by lead theft which, according to the Association of British Insurers, runs to over £1 million a week, with owners of buildings having to find the additional cost. Yorkshire-based company, Trace-in-Metal, employs its cutting edge technology to further underpin the deterrent effect of the legislation.
Northcot brick features in pioneering art installation
Bricks from UK independent manufacturer Northcot Brick are being used as the centrepiece in the exhibition by award winning Argentinian artist Adrián Villar Rojas at the new Serpentine Sackler Gallery in Kensington Gardens, London.
The exhibition, “Today We Reboot The Planet”, which runs from September 28th to November 10th 2013, is the first of a number of cultural events taking place as part of the opening of the newly restored and expanded Art Gallery.
Welsh church installs JBL sound system
A ‘condemned’ Victorian Grade II-listed church in Wales has been saved from destruction, renovated, and installed with a JBL sound system. The Diocese of St Asaph, serving the Anglican churches in north-east Wales, had been looking to close Holy Trinity Church in Holywell, Flintshire. However, newly appointed Rev Canon John Lomas was confident the church still had an important role to fill within the community, and so it received a stay of execution leading to a complete quarter of a million pound refurbishment project.
The 200-seat church, with its vaulted roof, was originally built in 1871 to a design by Ewan Christian and extended in 1910.
“We have fitted out around 40 churches in this diocese; mostly using loudspeakers from the JBL range and recently the CBT50LA model. When the church was inviting sound system designs, the rector contacted us,” said Richard Hughes of Richard King Systems of Oswestry, Wales. “It’s an area in which we specialise.”
Third training restaurant for The Clink Charity to be built at HMP Brixton
Plans to open a third Clink training restaurant have been approved for HMP Brixton. The proposals put forward by architects Purcell will transform the Old Governors House within the prison grounds into a three-storey restaurant and meetings venue.
The three-storey building will be converted into a 100 seat restaurant and rooms for business meetings and working lunches. The restaurant accommodation is located on the ground floor and will be served by the professional kitchen that exists in the adjacent building. The two upper floors will comprise ancillary meeting spaces.
Built in the early 19th century, the Old Governors House is one of the oldest buildings at HMP Brixton prison. The grade II listed brick building has an unusual octagonal form that once provided 360o views of the 19th century airing yards. At ground floor level the octagonal form is offset from the upper levels to create an octagonal ‘skirt’ or ‘pentice’. More recently the building has been used primarily as administration offices.
Clear advantages at Arkoni Arcade job
West Yorkshire metalworking firm Arkoni has put a fire-rated finishing touch to one of the most iconic and unique Victorian shopping malls in the UK.
The impressive Grade II listed Silver Arcade, situated on Silver Street in the heart of Leicester, was built in 1889 by architect Amos Hall and is the only four storey Victorian arcade of its type in Britain.
Stewart & Hutchinson Restore 16th Century Welsh Chapel Window
Stained glass and leadlight specialist Stewart & Hutchinson has restored a historic piece of artwork to its former glory.
The company painstakingly restored four irreplaceable stained glass windows at St Cardoc’s Church in Glynneath after two of the window lancets were identified as requiring urgent attention.
The work has helped to revitalise an important area of the church.
Forward looking restoration contractors saving time and money with Redsky IT solutions
Armitage Construction did not see itself as a particularly IT orientated business so it is surprising to see that all of its employees including those who are normally site-based, have access to a terminal in the head office where they can use Summit 1000.
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