Tugby church tower roof was in urgent need of repair and the PCC decided to make an application to the HLF for funding
In line with the HLF Grant application, the PCC were granted a contribution to improvements within the church by way of a small internal re-ordering scheme, which included a new toilet in the base of the tower and kitchen facilities within the west end of the church.
Having received an HLF Grant offer and following discussions early on with the client it was very obvious that they would like to support local trades and offer them the opportunity to tender for any works that were within their remit. It was agreed that the works would be split into two separate projects, with the grant aided tower repairs tendered as one piece of work and the internal re-ordering as another.
The grant aided tower repairs were tendered and secured by Stone Edge, historic building restoration specialists with experience in ecclesiastical buildings. They are undertaking repairs to the roof structure, replacing the roof covering with stainless steel which was previously asphalt, stonework repairs and re-pointing and re-rendering of the belfry walls, and there is a new external drainage system being installed to help reduce damp issues within the church. The internal re-ordering works were offered to local contractors with relevant experience and having invited three contractors to tender, Brown Shaw were the preferred choice based on cost and quality.
A requirement of an HLF application is to engage the community with the heritage of the building. The client is required to initiate activities that result in more people, and a wider range of people, engaging with the heritage project and we are great supporters of this, often giving our time to take part in these activities. We were excited to be invited to attend a ‘Scaffold Open Day’ at St Thomas a Becket, Tugby, on Saturday 18th March, where along with the Geoff Beetham from Stone Edge, we gave a ‘Talk and Tour’ around the projects that are being undertaken.
People were taken up the scaffold in groups of six, stopping at appropriate times to discuss the specifics of the project and when we were back on the ground we spoke about the internal re-ordering project taking place in the tower and the west end by local contractors Brown Shaw.