The Major Repair Programme at Salisbury Cathedral

It was in 1986 that the then Clerk of Works at Salisbury Cathedral, Roy Spring, first identified the huge amount of the work which would need to done on the beautiful and ancient medieval cathedral to conserve it for future generations.  That work was subsequently titled the Major Repair Programme, or MRP.  Four years later, in 1990, The Spire Appeal was set up under the patronage of the Prince of Wales and the massive undertaking began in earnest.

 

Peter Edds, Head of Buildings and Estate, explained, “Salisbury Cathedral took just 38 years to build in the 13^th century. The MRP is expected to take 30 years to complete which gives some idea of the scope and extent of the work being undertaken.  This work, with careful annual maintenance, should see the Cathedral’s fabric secure for at least the next 100 years. Along with our colleagues at Canterbury, Wells and Lincoln Cathedrals and York Minster, we are working hard to conserve our beautiful medieval cathedrals for future generations to enjoy.  They are part of our national heritage.”

Chicksgrove Quarry supplies all the stone for the Major Repair Programme. To date work has been completed on the spire, tower, roof, West Front, North nave aisle, internal and external re-lighting, and the East, South and West cloisters. Current work is centred on the North Transept and North East Transepts. Work still to be undertaken includes the North East, East and the entire South sides of the Cathedral - including the Chapter House stonework - and the North side of the cloister.

“To give some idea of scale of the job, work on the roof involved general repairs plus stripping off approximately 4 acres of lead, melting it down, re-casting and finally re-laying it on the roof.  In total that single task took 2½ years.”

Salisbury Cathedral Works Department currently has a skilled workforce of just under thirty full time employees consisting of: 4 conservators, 11 stonemasons (including one apprentice mason), 2 sawyers, Works Manager, 4 glaziers (including one apprentice glazier), an additional maintenance staff of 5, the Head of Buildings and Estate and his PA.  The cathedral’s specialist glazing team, headed by Sam Kelly, is one of only four Cathedral teams in the country with the necessary skills to undertake work on medieval glass.   In addition to the work they do on the MRP, they undertake a significant amount of specialist glazing work for other churches and historic properties. Edds never ceases to be amazed by how much is achieved by so few people.

Salisbury supplements its existing in-house skills by the use of other specialists such as stone carvers, paint conservators, cleaning and scaffolding contractors, lighting designers, and Jos cleaning.  It also works closely with a team of four specialist consultants – the Cathedral architect, engineer, quantity surveyor and the planning supervisor for all matters relating to the extensive Health & Safety legislation issues which apply.

The Cathedral is grateful to all its contractors whose work is invaluable.  ADT Fire and Security are responsible for the fire alarm systems.  A C Wallbridge, steeplejacks, check the lightening conductor at the top of the spire annually and replace the red warning lights there as needed! There are specialist stone carvers who produce individual carvings and statues.  Norman & Underwood who carried out specialist works on the roof. Peter Marsh is a marvellous specialist photographer who takes ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures of all the work carried out on the MRP. Horizon International provide and install the fall-arrest systems. Safety and Training Services provide all the Health & Safety training needed by Works Department staff on specific areas – for instance the scaffold, forklift truck driving and the fall-arrest system. Andy Pullen undertakes the Jos (high pressure) cleaning of stonework before the masons can start work.  The scaffolding, a familiar sight to all who visit the Cathedral, belongs to the Cathedral but it relies on Deborah Services who are specialist scaffold erectors and strikers.  Ann Ballantyne is the specialist paint conservator.

The cost of the MRP to date of circa £22 million has been funded by The Wolfson Foundation and English Heritage (31%), Cathedral reserves (21%), the Spire Appeal (37%) and the Friends of Salisbury Cathedral (11%).  The cathedral is actively fund raising from individuals and grant making trusts for the further £12.5 million needed to complete these important works.

Salisbury Cathedral’s specialist Glazing Department

Salisbury Cathedral’s specialist glazing team, headed by Sam Kelly, is one of only four cathedral teams in the country with the necessary skills to undertake work on medieval glass.  Skilled labour of this kind is not generally available and the quality of work is one of excellence. In addition to the work they do on Salisbury Cathedral’s Major Repair Programme (MRP), the team undertake a significant amount of specialist glazing work for other churches and historic properties.

Sam Kelly writes:

Our department exists to keep the skills needed for the repair of the Cathedral but also enables us to offer our services to churches, architects, builders and private customers in the surrounding area who require specialist glazing work.  This may include anything from plain lead light glazing to the conservation of Medieval stained glass.

While our work on Salisbury Cathedral takes us from the high lantern windows of the tower to the protective glazing of the medieval glass of the West Front, the outside contract work we undertake has always formed an important and interesting part of our working life.  There is a fascinating wealth of ancient and modern artistic and technical brilliance to be found in the stained glass of our churches.  There is beautiful early glass, produced for the greater Glory of God, and for the education of the illiterate masses.  There is the 19^th century gothic revival period of Pugin, Wailes and Morris, and the later works of Whall, Clarke, Kempe and Comper.  In more recent times we have seen outstanding works such as at Coventry Cathedral, the east window of Salisbury Cathedral and the fine west window at Sherborne Abbey.

Stained glass as a craft has gone through many phases of artistic change and some introduction of new techniques, yet the basic craftsmanship of the trade has not changed and it would be no problem at all for a medieval glazier to work at our benches.  The overriding concern when  working on the conservation of any ancient or art object is to do no harm to the piece, and when working on more vulnerable pieces we must also consider providing a protected environment.  This can take various forms and will require us providing a detailed condition report with conservation proposals.

One of the pleasures of our work is the great variety of people we meet.  It is rewarding being able to advise and assist them with their glazing projects and in many cases enjoy their building with them while work is taking place.

Issued by and further information from:

Sarah Flanaghan, 01722 555 148 / 07771 510 811, email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Salisbury Cathedral is one of Britain’s finest medieval cathedrals. It offers a warm welcome to all who visit and seeks to strengthen church and community life in the diocese. Salisbury Cathedral celebrates the presence of God through worship, music and art and has a special commitment to challenging injustice and fostering reconciliation, both at home and abroad. Over 250,000 people visit the Cathedral each year to marvel at the peace and beauty of the 750 year old building and admire Britain’s tallest spire. The finest original copy of the 1215 Magna Carta is on permanent display to visitors in the Chapter House.