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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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Museum start marks Burns anniversary
The 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns is being celebrated across Scotland, with 2009 also being designated the Year of Homecoming.
In Burns’s birthplace of Alloway, in Ayrshire, the anniversary has marked the start of a long-anticipated project to build a brand new Burns Museum to house the most important collection of the poet’s life and work.
The night is young! Let's visit the museum.
The weekend of 15-17 May will see the Museums at Night 2009 event, when museums open their doors for special night-time events and tours aimed at those who don’t normally get the chance to visit them.
Heritage bodies fear crisis in LA services
Heritage bodies have united to urge Government to use its proposed statement on the historic environment to encourage local authorities not to cut historic environment services. A new report into local authority conservation and archaeology resources in England has revealed a recent drop in staff levels that could, heritage bodies claim, lead to a future crisis.
Regeneration seminars stress importance of 'knowing the building'
More than 90 delegates attended a day of seminars on Regenerating Historic Buildings at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester at the end of April.
Last retreat faces £1m bill
One of the country’s last remaining Church of England retreat houses is launching a public appeal in a desperate bid to raise the £1m it needs for essential renovation work. If the money cannot be raised by the beginning of September the doors of Launde Abbey, which welcome in around 20,000 people a year, will be forced to close for good.
Restoration wins out over replacement: on cost
Wooden sash windows at a historic 17th-century mansion in Warwickshire have been saved and restored, because it proved more cost-effective than replacing them.
Heritage bodies announce shared commitment to skills training
Several leading organisations behind the drive to preserve and maintain the built heritage met in Westminster on 31 March under the auspices of Sir Patrick Cormack’s Arts and Heritage All Party Parliamentary Group, to launch a shared commitment to promote the highest possible standards and best practice in the built heritage workforce.
Merger creates a partnership of experience
Two architectural practices with track records in the ecclesiastical and heritage sectors have merged to form a new firm. PEP Architects Ltd and the Peter Bradford Partnership – both based in Tring, Hertfordshire – have come together to form Thompson Bradford Architects Ltd.
Eco glazing graces listed Meeting House
Quakers living close to the birthplace of their 357-year-old way of life are warming to a new solution for double glazing in listed buildings. The picturesque Sawley Friends Meeting House, a Grade Two-listed building that dates back to 1777, is situated on the edge of the Forest of Bowland in Lancashire – just a few short miles from Pendle Hill, where Quakerism first began, inspired by George Fox in 1652.
New funding announced for Bowes Museum
The transformation of The Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle in County Durham is continuing apace. The latest news is the announcement that a further bid for £250,000 to the Garfield Weston Foundation has been successful.
Report backs community uses for faith buildings
The Government and the Church of England has published guidelines to help all religious groups overcome the ‘squeamishness’ they can encounter from funding providers. Churches and Faith Buildings: Realising the Potential identifies funding and support for faith groups that will enable them to adapt their buildings for community use and build on their capacity to engage at local and regional level.
Late night opening set for May
The annual ‘Museums at Night’ event will this year take place from 15-17 May. A national campaign for late night opening across the UK, it seeks to attract people into museums who don’t usually visit simply by staying open late or by creating special events. It will link up with the European-wide campaign of the same name (La Nuit de Musées), which takes place on 16th May.
New light shines forth at Beamish
Beamish Open Air Museum in County Durham will open its latest exhibit to visitors on 28 March following an exclusive VIP preview on 26th March when it unveils a new £1m colliery lamp cabin, which complements the existing recreated 1913 Colliery Village, a centrepiece of the museum.
Olympic dig unearths ‘unknown London’
A flint axe over 4,000 years old was the cream of a crop of discoveries during a two-year archaeological investigation into the past of London’s Olympic Park. Archaeologists believe the unfinished prehistoric axe was placed in waterlogged ground on purpose, giving a unique insight into the first eastenders that lived and hunted in the area.
Blackfriars refurbishment will see new station
London’s 120-year-old Blackfriars Railway Bridge is to undergo a £6m refurbishment by industrial services group Pyeroy.
Excellence in Roofing: finalists announced
The National Federation of Roofing Contractors has announced the finalists in this year’s Excellence in Roofing Awards, including the popular Heritage category. The finalists have been selected based on demonstrated quality workmanship, technical difficulties encountered, problem solving, environmental qualities and aesthetics.What’s available and where
Preserving and maintaining the nation’s built heritage is also part and parcel of preserving the environment in which we live. That environmental husbandry extends to the materials we use in the restoration projects we undertake and new additions to the built heritage. Re-using and recycling is central to that work and is typified by the extensive use of architectural salvage.
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