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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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A fabulous new space created for this much loved theatre
The Progressive Players were founded in 1920. In 1939, founding members Ruth, Sylvia and Hope Dodds generously provided the money to purchase a vacant site facing Saltwell Park, together with adjoining No.3 Saltwell View, and build the Players’ own theatre.
The Little Theatre is believed to be the only playhouse built in Britain during World War II and to this day it remains Gatehead’s one theatre. It opened with a performance of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in October 1943 and since then the site has remained home to the Progressive Players who now produce ten plays a year.
Athlone House scoops brace of roofing awards
When the Pitched Roofing Awards were announced on 26 November, one outstanding project won both the Best Use of a Heritage Roof and Best Use of Concrete Clay Tiles for a Domestic Project categories. That project was the reroofing of Athlone House in North London using tiles produced by traditional manufacturer Dreadnought – whose pedigree in clay tile production dates from 1805.
Standing on high ground just beyond the northern edge of North London’s Hampstead Heath, within the Highgate Conservation Area, over its 150-year history Athlone House has been used as a private dwelling, a secret RAF school during WWII and more recently an NHS home for people with dementia.
ISCVE appoints new president and vice president
At its recent Members’ Day and AGM, the Institute of Sound, Communications and Visual Engineers (ISCVE) announced the appointment of its new president and vice-president.
Neil Voce, MInstSCVE, Sales Director for Ambient System, was appointed as the new president, for a term of three years, taking over from Helen Goddard FInstSCVE, while Jim Smith FInstSCVE was appointed vice president.
Kentec’s new K-Mesh wireless technology wins praise for Chester Cathedral project
K-Mesh, a next-generation wireless fire detection technology from Kentec Electronics, a leading manufacturer of life-critical control solutions, is winning deserved praise from the installer of a new system protecting the historic Chester Cathedral.
Brad Parker, founder of Charles Thomas Heritage Fire Protection, was tasked with specifying and upgrading the wireless fire detection system previously installed in the Cathedral. The thick walls and lead-lined roofs and the other challenges that come with a building that can trace its roots back to 1093, meant Brad had to think outside the box.
Ecclesiastical Insurance Group becomes Benefact Group
The new name and brand identity marks an ambitious new chapter for the charitable owned Group and its family of specialist businesses.
Owned by a registered charity, Benefact Trust, Benefact Group gives all its available profits to good causes. The new name better reflects the Group’s diversity, breadth and purpose – it derives from Latin and means to do well by supporting a person or good cause.
Spending a legacy on a sound system – what to upgrade?
Recently Blaydon Communications were contacted by a local church who had kindly been left a legacy and needed some advice. The sound system in the church had not been touched for many years so it was decided that a beneficial use for the money would be to upgrade the sound system. Conflicting online advice and sheer options for hardware had proved overwhelming, so it was time to draft in some professional help. The company's managing director Paul Dougherty takes up the story.
Our initial visit to the church was mainly a fact-finding mission to determine what the expectations of the church was from the proposed system. Once we knew what was expected we could work back through the technicalities of achieving the desired outcome without having to ask any technical questions to the church. Using this approach requires no technical knowledge from the end users and reinforces the fact that all we are interested in is making sure the system does it needs to when it is finished.
Restoration work at St Philip and St James Church, Whitton
When the fabric of the building at St Philip and St James Church, Whitton in Twickenham began to fail, Minerva Building Restoration Ltd were appointed to assess the general condition of this 1862 built church. The main brief was to accompany the client to determine the worst affected areas and ultimately produce detailed stone repair schedules and costs for consideration.
As with many churches, the issue of invalidating insurance policies with scaffolding in place meant that combination of scaffolding and cherry picker access was required to reach the works at high level.
Scanaudio provide induction loop at Temple Farm
Temple Farm is a new 84-acre UK headquarters for the International Bible Students Association (IBSA) located near Chelmsford, Essex. The site has up to 1,000 volunteer workers per day alongside a small number of outside sub-contractors and is professionally managed and run by the organisation.
To provide equal access to sound for people with hearing loss and fulfil the requirements of IEC 60118-4 in a multipurpose auditorium, the Jehovah’s Witnesses organisation approached assistive listening system manufacturer Ampetronic to help.
Don’t neglect your heating system
With news of the lifting of COVID restrictions in England and Scotland at least, churches are looking forward to returning to some kind of normality. It is still winter, however, and the church heating system will be shouldering its normal load – possibly after being on a frost-free setting for some time. It’s time for some maintenance.
In some cases maintenance is a legal obligation, such as in the case of oil tanks. The regulations governing the storage of oil are the control of Pollution (Oil Storage) Regulations for England, Scotland and Wales respectively.
Michelmersh products are now on NBS Source
Michelmersh products are now on NBS Source, offering detailed information and BIM files to architects.
Michelmersh is happy to announce its collaboration with NBS Source. This venture allows architects to browse Michelmersh products, BIM files and product specs on the NBS site. The RIBA CPD-approved site offers global leading technology, combining content and connectivity for the design, supply, and construction industry.
If you’re renovating a heritage building, having the right insurance is a must
Leigh Ide, business development executive at Trinitas Church Insurance Services, shares some useful guidance on insurance and contract works for heritage buildings.
Providing advice and guidance on the insurance aspects of building works to existing Trinitas clients is a regular part of my role. Those works can be very wide ranging. Most of the buildings we insure are listed as they are Church of England parish churches, and there is often an extra dimension to the advice and guidance required.
Ensuring rights of access to heritage sites
In 2010 the Equality Act came into force requiring all buildings to have disabled access. The access requirements go further than just the obvious as they also cover people who are visiting and/or working in the building. Heritage sites must ensure equal access for every user or visitor into all parts, including the historical part of the building. Richard Williams, divisional director of the Assent Group and Oculus Building Consultancy, explains.
Part M of the Building Regulations provides designers with guidance on access to and use of buildings but there are so many intricacies involved with historical sites that to meet every requirement can often be challenging or difficult. This may be due to the building’s layout or the strict planning controls that affect any alterations or works to these types of building.
Co-operation and collaboration – working for the future
The amalgamation of two churches in Harwood, near Bolton, paved the way for a major redevelopment project, involving demolition of the church hall and former manse to make way for the new building. Opened in July, the facilities at the new Harwood Methodist Church comprise a worship area, activity hall, meeting rooms, kitchen and café. All-in-all, it is a busy social hub with a variety of activities catering for all age groups.
During the redevelopment the church engaged Fullers Finer Furniture to design and build furniture for their beautiful new state-of-the-art building. Fullers Finer Furniture are a multi award-winning bespoke furniture manufacturer, with over 30 years’ experience in crafting furniture for places of worship. Equally happy in a new building, an ancient building or anything in between, they were delighted to work with the church on the project.
Repairs secure St Mary's Church, Aylesbury for the next century
Two contracts at St Mary’s, Aylesbury, were undertaken together as a single project. The works included stonework repairs, repointing, leadwork repairs, window restoration and introduction of isothermal glazing, furniture and flooring repairs as well as renewal of the boiler flue and various other sundry works. The architect for the project was Daniel Benson of Ablett Architects.
The works were coordinated with great care, using experienced craftsmen and specialist firms to undertake the technically challenging and highly artisan-based works. They demonstrate the care and commitment brought to this project which has secured the building into the next century.
The Grade 1 listed church of St Mary’s, Aylesbury, is a nationally important church. The ancient edifice has Saxon origins and has undergone many visible periods of growth, alterations and restoration resulting in the characterful and imposing church we see today. This large church dominates the town centre of Aylesbury and is situated in a walled churchyard ringed by historic buildings which, in effect, creates a setting akin to a Cathedral close.
Decorative panels are brought back into use
Dorothea Restorations have shared the story of their restoration of decorative hand-made panels, which are ‘simple in design but showcase the skills of the blacksmith’ who made them.
According to the firm’s blog: “The origins of the panels are unknown but we believe they were commissioned for the property and removed for storage during renovation works. The panels were stored on the premises but not in use or maintained.
UK's first 10m LGMG diesel scissor lifts go underground
Rental specialist PG Platforms has taken delivery of the first LGMG SR818D diesel scissor lifts to be sold in the UK and has sent them straight out on a highway tunnel maintenance project.
Company Managing Director Steve Cutting said he was impressed with the build quality, easy operation and specification of the Chinese-made self-propelled scissor lifts, which made them ideal for working at height in tunnels.
Belton visitors help Martin-Brooks repair boathouse
Heritage roofing specialists, Martin-Brooks, have played an integral role in the preservation of a key architectural feature in the grounds of Lincolnshire’s grade I listed Belton House.
The Sheffield-based firm has reroofed the Grantham estate’s boathouse, one of only two surviving structures of its type in the UK, helping return it to its former glory.
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