It’s a real sadness that this project is having to happen at all following the largest ever lead theft the church has ever seen. However, it is always a privilege to see the inner workings and structures of historic buildings.
At the beginning of January we had our last service in the building and packed up everything ready to be moved to our temporary home at All Saint’s Church on Corn Street.
The scaffolders moved in the next day and begin work on the construction of a temporary roof to completely span the length and width of the nave. The scaffolding has been hoarded and alarmed to ensure site security whilst works are underway. Towards the end of Jan this was largely complete and Carrek (our main contractor) didn’t hesitate to start stripping off the old roof coverings which have now been safely removed from site.
The PCC has decided to capitalise on having a contractor and scaffolding on site and fund some urgent repairs to the west elevation of the nave. The scaffolding has also given us access to inspect the west window and elevation closely and the stonemasons will now trawl across this and make recommendations for repairs.
Inside the nave the centre section of floor has been lifted ready for a ‘birdcage’ scaffolding which will enable workers to install the new ceiling and decorate etc. At the end of the project the whole floor will be renewed.
In the next month we expect the ‘birdcage’ scaffolding to be completed and the internal works to the roof structure and ceiling to have commenced.
