Restoration Work - Phase 1

Work started on Phase 1 in September 2001 by R & J Hogg Ltd. This work is confined to the tower. The architect is Tony Redman of the Whitworth Co-partnership.

Scaffolding on the tower

The work undertaken includes: Re-leading the roof; repairing the parapets; repairing and treating Death-watch beetle-damaged joists*; repairing the guttering; replacing the louvres in the belfry; replacing of meshing in belfry windows; repainting the clock hands and numbers.

* Death-watch beetle larvae cause great damage to timbers generating 3-4mm diameter holes in the wood which compromises its strength.

Scaffolding on the tower

Graffiti dating from 1666, 1699, 1715 and 1782 was found on the roof including a windmill drawing.

Internally, there is a degree of subsidence in the tower which was partially addressed in the 1980s but may need further attention in the future. This can be seen in one of the pillars supporting the tower is in bad repair. This will need strengthening to help support the tower and may form part of a later phase of the repairs.

The work on the tower was finished in January 2002. This was later than had originally been anticipated but with the discovery of Death-watch beetle damaged timbers more work had to be undertaken to replace these timbers. This also required the erection of a temporary roof on the top of the scaffolding to stop rain entering the now opened roof space.

Below is a short gallery of photos taken at a later stage of the restoration. Click on a thumb-nail image to reveal the full sized picture. Then click on the browser "back button" to return to the gallery.