Medieval History
A medieval church in Thetford, England, needs £40,000 for urgent repairs and local officials are attempting to force its owner to pay for it.
The Church of St Mary the Less, in Old Bury Road, Thetford, has been not been used since 1975. Its ownership has changed several times, while the building deteriorated. A large section of roof over the north aisle collapsed just before Christmas.
The local council has now issued an urgent works notice to force the repairs to be done by the owner of the building, London-based retired company director Ron Collins.
Mr Collins will be given 14 days to do the work, and if he refuses the council can have the work carried out and then claim the money from him by seizing his personal assets.
English Heritage has indicated it would grant four-fifths of unrecoverable costs up to a maximum of £30,000.
Council leader William Nunn said it was essential for a strong message to be sent to all owners of at-risk buildings. He told a local paper: ?I hope that by pursuing him personally for his liabilities it will lead him to take his respon-sibilities seriously. If people are buying up old buildings and trying to make a quick buck, we will make sure they do them up and preserve them or sell them on to someone who will do that.?
St Mary the Less is one of only three surviving medieval churches in Thetford. The church also needs protection to stop pigeons getting in, works to the tower roof and regular monitoring of its security.
Breckland deputy leader Bill Smith said: ?I deplore the current state of the building. The owners really need to look at themselves and ensure the work is carried out. It is quite bad that they are not fulfilling their obligations to carry out their responsibilities. The work must be carried out."
Ownership of the building has changed several times in recent years, and previous permission granted to turn the church into flats has lapsed.
Mr Collins bought the building in 2004 for £124,000 and is offering the building on the open market for £199,950.
He said any damage to the building was not a result of deterioration but of vandalism, and added that he did not have the money to fix the damage.
?People throw things through the roof, and we've been down many times and locked it up, but they just use diamond cutters to get through,? he said. ?At the time [of purchase] it had planning permission, but the vandalism has been so great. It wasn't worth spending the money to do the works to the building. Until it's converted into a livable building there's no hope of stopping it.?
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Medieval History
Thetford Medieval Church needs urgent repairs
A medieval church in Thetford, England, needs £40,000 for urgent repairs and local officials are attempting to force its owner to pay for it.
The Church of St Mary the Less, in Old Bury Road, Thetford, has been not been used since 1975. Its ownership has changed several times, while the building deteriorated. A large section of roof over the north aisle collapsed just before Christmas.
The local council has now issued an urgent works notice to force the repairs to be done by the owner of the building, London-based retired company director Ron Collins.
Mr Collins will be given 14 days to do the work, and if he refuses the council can have the work carried out and then claim the money from him by seizing his personal assets.
English Heritage has indicated it would grant four-fifths of unrecoverable costs up to a maximum of £30,000.
Council leader William Nunn said it was essential for a strong message to be sent to all owners of at-risk buildings. He told a local paper: ?I hope that by pursuing him personally for his liabilities it will lead him to take his respon-sibilities seriously. If people are buying up old buildings and trying to make a quick buck, we will make sure they do them up and preserve them or sell them on to someone who will do that.?
St Mary the Less is one of only three surviving medieval churches in Thetford. The church also needs protection to stop pigeons getting in, works to the tower roof and regular monitoring of its security.
Breckland deputy leader Bill Smith said: ?I deplore the current state of the building. The owners really need to look at themselves and ensure the work is carried out. It is quite bad that they are not fulfilling their obligations to carry out their responsibilities. The work must be carried out."
Ownership of the building has changed several times in recent years, and previous permission granted to turn the church into flats has lapsed.
Mr Collins bought the building in 2004 for £124,000 and is offering the building on the open market for £199,950.
He said any damage to the building was not a result of deterioration but of vandalism, and added that he did not have the money to fix the damage.
?People throw things through the roof, and we've been down many times and locked it up, but they just use diamond cutters to get through,? he said. ?At the time [of purchase] it had planning permission, but the vandalism has been so great. It wasn't worth spending the money to do the works to the building. Until it's converted into a livable building there's no hope of stopping it.?
- Urgent Call For Repairs To Medieval Churches In Honing And Crostwight
An unusual series of medieval paintings depicting the seven deadly sins could be lost from the walls of All Saints Church at Crostwight near North Walsham unless £150,000 can be found to re thatch the leaky roof, re-render the walls and repair the exterior...
- Renovation Of Medieval Church To Begin
The first phase of the emergency renovation of an historic 13th century church has begun after donors gave more than £250,000. Conservationists at St Mary?s Church, in Lydiard Park, have begun the vital high-level and emergency repair works necessary...
- Battle To Protect Norwich?s Medieval City Walls Receives Time And Cash Boost
Protectors of the medieval city walls in Norwich are hoping to save cash and slash waiting times for urgent repairs by up to 12 months. Norwich City Council faces an ongoing battle to preserve the much-loved walls, with water, road salt and plants causing...
- Cardigan Castle Receives £4.7m Grant
Cardigan Castle, which dates back to the eleventh century, has received a grant of nearly £4.7m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to save the iconic building and create a major heritage visitor destination. Cadwgan Building Preservation Trust have...
- £15.7 Million Given Out To Repair 154 Churches In England
English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) announced this week more than £15.7 million to support urgent repair work to 154 churches across England, including many dating back to the Middle Ages. The grants were awarded under the organisations?...