News

Current Issue

Repairs and restoration to decorative plasterwork in Teeside’s Victorian Town Hall now completed!

After 18 months of working on this project, Ryedale Plasterers have now completed their part of the renovation and have restored the decorative plasterwork. After years of neglect, this building's interior was decaying and in a truly terrible state. The repairs required were throughout the entire building - to walls, a glazed dome over a stairwell, cornice, ceilings and archways. The main area of work was to the decorative plasterwork in the Civic Suite.

All repairs were completed using time-honoured plaster and lime techniques that create a durable, ecological finish. All the repairs the company have made will maintain the authenticity of this grade II listed building that dates back to 1890 and was designed by local architect James Garry.

12th century church gets new carbon neutral heating system

0n7388 St Nicholas Church is a Grade 2* twelfth-century parish church in Great Wilbraham, to the east of Cambridge. The original building was remodelled in the thirteenth century in a cruciform plan, and the west tower, which houses six bells, was added by the fifteenth century.

When heating a church of this age and beauty it is essential that the design of the system not only addresses the heat problem, but helps to stabilise humidity, which can cause fabric issues in an old church such as St Nicholas.

Restoration of St Oswald's Church, Grasmere

St Oswald’s Church stands on the banks of the River Rothay in the centre of Grasmere and is a Grade I listed building that dates from 1250AD. Up until the 1890s the church was rendered in lime. At that time the lime render was removed, and the pointing raked out. This was replaced with a cementitious strap pointing which caused severe damp, so further action was required. To try and solve the damp, in 1921 the church was encased in a cementitious pebble dash render.

Traditional oast construction catches programme makers’ eye

The people at Channel 4 television love a good oast house construction with its familiar cowl – and the team at Dude and Arnette are just the people to make it happen for them.

Back in 2017 the company was featured in the Village of the Year series, showcasing the history of oast cowls and Kent peg tiles. This spring a crew has been filming the construction of an oast house from start to finish. It will form part of a series showcasing different types of traditional buildings, each one being different and unique – such as a church or a windmill.

Easy-to-use streaming solution reaches the COVID congregation

0n8274 St Pauls Weston Super Mare is the largest church in the Diocese of Bath and Wells apart from the cathedrals. It normally has a big, vibrant congregation and has strong links with the community.

When COVID restrictions meant they could only house a fraction of their normal congregation, they approached APi Sound and Visual to create a streaming solution. Craig the minister had recommended APi to the church as they had recently installed a comprehensive sound and visual system into his previous church in Ilminster. APi’s managing director ANDY PIDSLEY takes up the story.

Builder who believes Actis Hybrid should be a legal requirement refurbishes scout hut

A Stroud builder who believes Actis Hybrid products should be a legal requirement in all reroofing and new build projects will be making life more comfortable for his local scout troop thanks to a donation from the insulation specialist.

Mike Nicholls, who runs a construction firm specialising in period property refurbishments including listed buildings, mill and barn conversions, is a huge fan of the range. And when his local scout group could cope no longer with the damp, dingy, cold back room in their converted farriers’ Cotswold stone building, he offered to step in and help them out.

Gowercroft Joinery wins top woodworking award for Winston Churchill’s former home

High quality timber window and door specialist Gowercroft Joinery has received one of the woodworking industry’s highest national accolades for its part in the restoration of Templeton House, Sir Winston Churchill’s former home in Roehampton.

Gowercroft saw off stiff competition from other joinery companies, to win the British Woodworking Federation’s ‘Woodworking Project of the Year’ award, which recognises the very best in design, innovation, application and ability in joinery manufacture along with craftsmanship and technical excellence.

New internal lighting completed at St Margaret's Church, Betley

St Margaret’s Church is a Grade I listed building situated within the beautiful village of Betley. With its wide and varied history, St Margaret’s has been through many changes over its existence. CLS Electrical Services Ltd were proudly asked to provide a lighting design and full specification which included the replacement of internal electrical distribution equipment.

Installation work was completed successfully in September 2020 and provided a new DALI controlled LED lighting system which will reduce the ongoing maintenance issues and lower the electricity consumption within the church. Provisions were also made to allow future installation of additional exterior lighting which shall be carried out once faculty approval is granted. Existing distribution boards were replaced bringing the complete electrical system up to date with current regulations.

0n8227

For further information visit www.churchlightingsystems.com

Heritage railway’s new facilities showcase brick specialism

Opened in 1862, Bridgnorth is the working terminus of the Severn Valley Railway (SVR) – a popular heritage steam railway.

Lying within the Bridgnorth Conservation Area and overlooked by Pan Pudding Hill – a scheduled ancient monument – the site is a highly significant heritage asset and all key original buildings still remain. The main station building is Grade Two-listed, and since 1979 had been served by a ‘temporary’ Portakabin refreshment room, which has detracted from the setting of the listed station.

St Mary's Church, Funtington gets new internal lighting and external renovation

0n8230

CLS Electrical Services Ltd were commissioned to design and install a new lighting system at St. Mary’s Church in Funtington. They removed the existing tungsten light fittings and associated cabling, along with the banks of light switches that were used to control the original lighting. All of this was replaced with a new DALI controlled lighting scheme with simple to use controls.

A timeclock built within the system operates chosen light fittings during the daytime allowing enough light for visitors to walk around safely. The work carried out also included renovation of the external lighting as well as installing additional socket outlets within the church. The existing distribution equipment was also replaced and decluttered bringing everything up to date.

Ancient building material still has many uses

One of the universal building materials prior to the end of the 19th century was lime. Lime was present in various forms in almost every building, from limewash on the walls of cattle byres and cottages to the mortar used on cathedral and castle walls.

According to the British Lime Association (BLA), lime was burnt as early as the 4th century BC, when it was first used as a building material. Today, the universal term ‘lime’ includes quicklime, hydrated lime, milk of lime and dolomitic lime.

Safe use of church heating systems

The average Anglican church is a tricky place to heat. This guidance from insurers Ecclesiastical provides advice on the safe and efficient use of various church heating systems.

Churches usually have large internal spaces, high ceilings and, putting the more modern churches to one side for the moment, the construction of its doors and leaded windows will make it difficult to insulate. A well-maintained heating system is important – which means conducting a number of checks throughout the year. Furthermore, from an insurance perspective, heating systems create several risks of their own, of which trustees need to be aware.

Ecclesiastical launches pilot to put 18th century Kenwood House on a technological par with The Shard

Specialist insurer Ecclesiastical is working with English Heritage to pilot cutting edge technology to monitor and manage building services at 18th century Kenwood House.

In the first scheme of its kind, Ecclesiastical and English Heritage, in partnership with technology firm Shepherd, are piloting sensors to monitor Kenwood, the former home of William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, located on the edge of Hampstead Heath in London. The sensors - which are battery-operated and do not require Wi-Fi - discreetly monitor environmental changes within the building.

Page 36 of 120

Start
Prev
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
Next
End

Leaderboard Banners