Update July 2023
There has been no movement in the project’s finances since my last report. The balance in hand remains at £12916.50. We have applied for, but not yet received, the grant of £2500 from the Church Buildings Council towards the clock. We still have the promised grant of £20000 from the Friends of St Mary’s to call upon.
Since my last report we have had two visits from Cumbria Clock Co to attend to teething problems with the clock and strike. I believe that these have both been satisfactorily dealt with.
Things are moving painfully slowly with the staircase. The DAC reported their approval of the design on 1 June, subject to their being a gate at the top of the staircase. This requirement was agreed via Recclesia. The DAC also required the project timescales, ie lead time from placing the order and time on site. These were requested from Recclesia. On 19 June Reccesia responded with the requested timescales, and this enabled us to submit the faculty petition and display the public notice.
On 19 June Recclesia also supplied updated costs. The uplift was 10% as opposed to the 12% forecast, but still takes the project cost over the amount in hand and promised, by £1350. I am seeking further grants, which will also require costing the improvements we would like to the ringing room consequent on the new staircase. These also now include the clock case, required as part of the clock faculty.
A further issue has now arisen. Last week the local Fire Service personnel visited the tower at our invitation, as I was keen to talk to them about evacuation procedures in the event of a casualty in the tower. The outcome was that they would need better access through the ringing room floor and also from the ringing room to the bell chamber in order to secure lifting gear to the bell frame. The former I was already aware of, but the latter was unexpected. Both of these will need to be dealt with as part of the project.
Recclesia have advised a timescale of ten weeks from placing the order to starting work, and six weeks on site. The faculty public display period ends on 20 July. If we were to get the faculty by mid-August, the timescale, assuming no further slippage, would be getting ominously close to the run-up to Christmas. Recclesia’s revised costs are also valid only until the end of August. We also need to plan the reorganisation of the tower base to accommodate the work as it progresses, and in its final state. It is also worth noting that I will be out of the country between 17 September and 6 October.
Chris Kippin 9 July 2023
Update March 2023
The return of the clock on 20 February and its subsequent reinstallation was of itself an excellent piece of publicity, and superseded my intention to write another progress report for the March Clarion. Jim Reynolds did insert a short piece together with a picture of the plaque recording the installation of the clock in 1772. Further updates will be sent to the Clarion as necessary.
Funding – money in
Nothing has come in since January.
Funding – money out
The final invoice from Cumbria Clock Co has been paid, leaving us a balance in hand of £8418.22. The completion of the clock work will enable me to apply for the promised grants from the Shropshire Historic Churches Trust, the Church Buildings Council and the Clockmakers’ Company. I will also be able to apply for a refund of the VAT paid on the final Cumbria invoice. Details of the current funding situation, agreed with our Treasurer, are attached.
Clock
The eventual receipt of the clock faculty at the beginning of February enabled Cumbria Clock Company to reinstall the clock between 20 and 23 February, the necessary power supply having been installed by Andy Wakeman during the previous week. The clock work was done very efficiently and the Cumbria staff were a pleasure to deal with. The clock is working well, though I am still trying to regulate it to keep good time. There is a small problem with the hour strike which has been reported to Cumbria. They have promised to send one of their technicians to correct it.
Staircase
We are waiting for the schedule of works and final costings from Recclesia. I was told in January that these were being worked on, but they haven’t materialised yet. I have sent an email reminder and have tried to contact them by phone, but so far without success. I will keep trying. Until we receive and approve the schedule of works we can’t apply for a faculty, nor will we know the extent to which our finances will cover the cost.
The light under the tower was replaced by Andy Wakeman on 9 March. It was agreed that this would be funded as part of the lighting improvements in the tower, as part of the project.
Chris Kippin 12 March 2023
The Faculty for the clock was received last week, and engineers from Cumbria Clock Company will be reinstalling the mechanism from Monday 20 to Thursday 23 February.
Tower project progress report 15 November
Publicity
I did post my September update on the Benefice website, but I did not manage to get anything in either the October or November Clarion. My apologies for that. However, I have sent Jim Reynolds an article in time for the December edition.
Funding – money in
We were successful in our grant application to the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers. They have promised us £500. I am not aware that we have heard anything from Allchurches Trust. The final total for my sponsored walk was £8668, with a further £1874.50 due in Gift Aid.
Funding – money out
We have now paid the final instalment for the frame painting so that part of the project is now complete and paid for. I will now be able to reclaim VAT on the final instalment, which will be £1011.33, and apply for payment of the £800 grant from the Hereford Diocesan Guild of Bellringers Bell Restoration Fund.
Clock
The latest news I have from Cumbria Clock Co is that the clock is on test and performing very well. I have not yet got a firm date for its reinstallation but they did indicate that they hoped it would be in November. However, they will not be able to do this until we have the faculty. Discussion in going on about some technical issues.
Staircase
This is taking longer than I expected. The floor survey was done on 16 September. The result was that although the subsoil on which the floor sits is firm, and no unknown vaults were discovered, the floor tiles are laid directly onto the subsoil and a concrete plinth will therefore be required to anchor the staircase. Shire Consulting need the staircase loadings (static and active) to enable them to design the plinth. Reccesia have been trying to get these figures from Elite Staircases and have promised to chase them. Once the plinth is designed, Recclesia should be able produce a final specification for the staircase and installation, and give us a price. Once we’ve got a specification we’ll be able to apply for a faculty, and once we’ve got a price we’ll be able to see whether we need to do any more fund-raising.
Chris Kippin 16 November 2022
St Mary’s Church – tower project: September update
Work continues, though much of it is unseen. The clock was removed by Cumbria Clock Co on 3 August and is currently at their works being restored. At the moment we don't know when they plan to return it. The painting of the bell frame begins on Monday 26 September and will finish on Friday 28 October. This means that the bells will be out of action for the whole of October. Work on the plan for the staircase has been waiting for a report on the tower floor. The survey was carried out on 16 September. We await the consultants' report, but we believe that the indications on the strength of the floor are good.
Fund raising is going satisfactorily. Until we have an agreed and costed specification for the staircase we don't know what the total cost of the project will be, but we are confident that we will have enough money to cover all the bills as they come in. We have been successful in a number of grant applications, and more are in the pipeline. My sponsored walk from Bristol Land's End will have raised over £10,000 by the time Gift Aid tax relief is reclaimed. Read an account of the walk here.
Chris Kippin, PCC Secretary, St Mary’s Church thekippins@btinternet.com
St Mary’s Church – tower project: August update
Since the June edition of Clarion we have made significant progress with the tower project. The most recent development is that the Cumbria Clock Company will be removing the clock from the tower and taking it to their works for overhaul some time in the week commencing 1 August. This is good news as it will be the first practical sign of things happening.
An order has been placed with Nicholson Engineering of Bridport for the bell-frame painting. This is the firm which did the last work on the bells in 2011 and we are pleased to be working with them again. We have agreed to supply volunteer labour to assist with the dismantling and reassembly of fittings necessary to give clear access for the painting, and this will give us a useful discount on the price. The frame painting will take place between 3rd and 28th October, and the bells will be out of action during that time.
We are working with contractors to agree a final plan for the staircase. Before this can be agreed we have to have a survey of the floor to check whether it will be strong enough to take the weight of the staircase. This will involve drilling a hole in the floor and extracting a core for analysis. At the moment we’re waiting for permission from the Diocese to do this. We will also need an archaeologist to be present when the hole is drilled, in case anything interesting is uncovered.
Our fund-raising is progressing satisfactorily. In addition to the generous donation from the Friends of St Mary’s, we have secured grants from the Church Buildings Council towards the clock work, and from Shropshire Historic Churches trust for the project generally. Other grant applications have been submitted for the overall project and for individual elements of it. By the time you read this article I should have nearly completed a sponsored walk from Bristol to Land’s End in aid of the project. If there’s anyone who would like to sponsor me who hasn’t already been approached, there are sponsorship forms in the back of the church, or you can email me at the address shown below.
Chris Kippin, PCC Secretary, St Mary’s Church thekippins@btinternet.com
St Mary’s Church – tower project
Most people in Cleobury will have noticed that the church clock has stopped. It stopped on Sunday 17 October, the day before the death of Alec Osbaldiston, and in spite of all our efforts we have been unable to persuade it to go again. The clock has been inspected by the Diocesan Clock Advisor, and by the Cumbria Clock Company, and their advice is that a full workshop-based restoration is necessary. The clock is a historic instrument, having been built by the Birmingham-based builder George Donisthorpe in 1772, and is a rare example of his work. This year is its 250th anniversary, and we are therefore keen to see it restored to working order as a fitting memorial to Alec, who looked after the clock for very many years and masterminded its last restoration.
The need to restore the clock has spurred us to tackle two other projects in the tower, the replacement of the ladder by the which the ringers access the ringing room, by a safer spiral staircase, and the re-painting of the cast-iron and steel bell frame. The ladder rises nineteen feet in one continuous ascent, and faces a blank wall at the top so that it’s necessary to climb off and on the ladder sideways. These days it would not pass health and safety regulations on several counts, and it is high time that it was replaced by something safer.
The bell frame was installed as part of the major restoration of the bells in 1925. It is a massive installation, measuring some 15 feet square by eight feet high, and is constructed of cast-iron frame sides resting on steel girders. These girders are so large that they were deemed strong enough to take the additional weight of the structural steelwork which was installed in 1993 to support the spire. It is therefore essential that the whole installation is kept in good order to preserve the future of the bells and of the spire. Re-painting is not a trivial exercise, and certainly outside the scope of a DIY job, as the frame surface has to be thoroughly prepared, and any rust and flaking paint removed. Old paint may well contain lead, so it is definitely a job for professionals.
How much will all this cost? The clock restoration will be about £10,000, and the bell-frame painting another £10,000. There is more design work to be done on the staircase yet, so the cost of this element is not yet known exactly. We are expecting the total cost of the project, including incidentals and an allowance for contingency, to be about £40,000. We will have to pay VAT as well, but luckily we will be able to reclaim this through the Listed Places of Worship grant scheme.
We have received a generous donation from the Friends of St Mary’s towards the work, and this has enabled us to place the order for the restoration of the clock with Cumbria Clock Company. As part of the restoration, the clock will also be converted to electric winding, which will save the effort and commitment of having to wind it three times a week. We hope that the clock work will be carried out in the autumn. The Cumbria Clock Company is the leading tower clock engineering firm in the UK, and are just finishing the restoration of the clock in the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament, the clock which strikes on Big Ben. We also hope to be in a position to place an order for the frame painting shortly. We are working with our architect on the final design of the staircase. It is hoped that we will complete the whole project before the end of the year.
We will be applying for grants, and carrying out fund-raising, to enable us to pay for the work. Further updates will be issued as we go along.
Chris Kippin, PCC Secretary, St Mary’s Church thekippins@btinternet.com