Historic Churches 2017

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BCD SPECIAL REPORT ON HISTORIC CHURCHES 24TH ANNUAL EDITION 47
in enough detail to assess the nature and
scale of any necessary remedial action.
In contrast, one of the great
advantages of drone surveys, according
to Dr Rauxloh of the Museum of London
Archaeology (MOLA), is that they allow
‘directed shots of known areas of building
weakness’, especially when they are
conducted in association with those who
know the building best. Drone surveys
can provide information and evidence
for management and maintenance plans,
quinquennial inspections and immediate
repair needs.
Dr Rauxloh and his team looked at
nine churches in the Sheffield diocese over
the course of three weeks. The purpose
of the work was to determine how drone
technology can help the early detection of
defects and ongoing monitoring of these
precious buildings by providing detailed
information which is unattainable from
the ground. This information can be used
to create dimensionally accurate 3-D
models and other digital products.
The core output was a report in
which the products derived from the
drone flight can be studied to see how
they can benefit the inspection and
monitoring process. This assessment
was carried out in association
with architects, the NCT, diocesan
representatives and incumbents. The
project disks containing images captured
by the drones were also given to each
church to share with their architects.
Church maintenance training
Maintenance training is delivered by the
Society for the Protection of Ancient
Buildings (SPAB) to church wardens and
other volunteers responsible for looking
after church buildings.
Janet Edmond, project manager of
the Yorkshire Maintenance Project, has
been leading the training, which has
brought new awareness of the importance
of maintenance to the volunteers who
look after historic church buildings. She
and her team ran a series of maintenance
training sessions in partnership with
SPAB in Doncaster, Sheffield, York and
Dewsbury during November 2016 with
follow-up training sessions in March
2017. Videos of the training can be
seen on Vimeo
album/4588505).
The main aims of the training
sessions were to raise awareness of the
Yorkshire Maintenance Project and
the new MaintenanceBooker website
service and associated grant funding,
to highlight the importance of building
maintenance and to give basic training to
church wardens and church volunteers
on how to manage maintenance
issues in their places of worship.
Over the two training sessions
delegates learned how to conduct a
baseline condition survey and create
a maintenance plan for their places of
worship as well as how to recognise
maintenance problems at an early stage.
They were also invited to consider the
benefits of forming a maintenance
co-operative, a group of church
wardens and church maintenance
volunteers who regularly meet or
communicate with and support each
other to look after their buildings.
MaintenanceBooker
The third part of the Yorkshire
Maintenance Project is
MaintenanceBooker, a web-based
service that allows the people tasked
with looking after churches to quickly
identify and secure an appointment
for maintenance services through a
qualified craftsperson or contractor.
The service is available to all churches
across Yorkshire, listed and unlisted.
The website, which has been launched
as a partnership with 2buy2 (a national
buying group for UK businesses, charities,
schools and churches), provides an online
‘one-stop shop’ where churches and
chapels can book accredited contractors
for services including gutter clearance,
tree maintenance and inspection of
lightning protection systems.
All contractors registered with
MaintenanceBooker will provide
a fully professional and value-for-
money service. The selection criteria
for contractors include experience
working with churches and historic
buildings, appropriate qualifications,
references from completed works and
having an adequate level of insurance.
As well as churches and chapels,
organisations tasked with looking after
non-ecclesiastical historic buildings can
also make use of MaintenanceBooker.
Cost can be a major barrier for
churches seeking to tackle maintenance
tasks but more help is available through
the Preventative Maintenance Micro-
Grant programme. The micro-grants,
made available by The Pilgrim Trust,
cover 50 per cent of a church’s gutter
clearance service if booked through
MaintenanceBooker. If a church is listed it
may also be eligible for an award from the
National Churches Trust’s Maintenance
Grant Programme.
Although currently operating only in
Yorkshire and Humber, there are already
plans to make MaintenanceBooker
services available in other parts of
England and Wales.
The hope is that the website will help
many overburdened church wardens,
volunteers and clergy throughout the
country to identify and engage professional
help to maintain their buildings.
REGULAR MAINTENANCE
SAVES MONEY
According to Michael Murray, director of
church support at the NCT, the Yorkshire
Maintenance Project will help to ensure
that Yorkshire’s churches and chapels are
well maintained, minimising the risk of
serious damage to them. He hopes that
the project will result in 274 churches in
the dioceses of Sheffield, York and West
Yorkshire joining the scheme.
‘Regular maintenance is essential for
churches’ he said. ‘An overflowing gutter
soon soaks the wall beneath, rots the roof
timbers behind it and makes the whole
building vulnerable’. He also pointed out
that, as well as keeping a church building
in good repair, preventive maintenance
saves money. It has been estimated that
every £1 spent on keeping a church in
good condition saves £30 in repair costs
within five years.
In the past so much additional cost
and work has been caused by poor
repairs or volunteers not knowing who
to contact for help. Getting the basics
right, knowing which materials and
methods to use, when to seek advice
and having a regular maintenance plan
in place will be hugely beneficial.
Further Information
advice/yorkshire-maintenance-project
EDDIE TULASIEWICZ is head of
communications at the National Churches Trust.
Reverend Eleanor Robertshaw helps to direct a drone
survey at St Laurence Priory, Snaith, East Yorkshire