RAP Appeal Completed
The work is finished and, except for a few loose ends, the project is complete. It is interesting how many people have commented on how good the church now looks.
How much did it all cost? The answer in round figures is £210,000 and this is made up by the initial investigation work, the main contract and professional fees. There was VAT in addition but this was recoverable under what is called The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
Where did the money come from? Without financial support from English Heritage we could not have managed. They gave us £117,000. Of course, this came with certain conditions attached, and the main ones are having the church open to visitors and keeping up with the maintenance programme. Other grants came to a little over £27,000. This means that the balance of £66,000 came from church funds, fundraising and the generosity of the local community, and that is a truly remarkable achievement.
What did we do with the money? The main problem area was the poor condition of the mortar and stonework in the tower. It was a painstaking (and often dusty) job to hack out the old mortar and repoint the stonework, and a very precise task to cut new stones to size and fit them.
The other main areas of work were:
The regilding of “George” the weathercock and refixing the weathervane.
- Replacing the lead work on the tower roof and the drainpipes.
- Rebuilding the parapet at the west end of the nave roof.
- Creating two new hatches to give access to the inside of the nave roof.
- Repairing and regilding the west clock face.
- Replacing or repairing the louvres (the stone and timber slats) in the bell chamber openings – and fitting them with new anti-bird mesh!
- Repairing the lead work in the south aisle parapet gutter and fitting a stainless steel gutter on the north aisle.
- Reroofing the south aisle with sound slates from both aisle roofs and the north aisle with new slates, and also reroofing the porch.
Many other bits and pieces were done whilst the scaffolding was in position, so one could say the church has had a makeover!
Once again, I would like to say a huge thank you to all involved for their help, support and financial assistance.
Stephen Winwood.