Why did the Church Roof need work?

TKB Associates, with DGI Architects, carried out a survey of the roof. The following is a summary of their findings:

• Over the years the roof has been leaking; repairs were done with inappropriate materials which did not completely seal the roof; with the result water penetrated the fabric of the building.
• Many of the roof trusses have been infected by both water penetration and by furniture beetle which has made their structure unsound.
• Some of the principal structural trusses showed significant signs of bending and in two places had failed.
• Debris and rubble, where the roof meets the walls, had prevented an adequate air flow to keep the roof space ventilated.
• Gutters had crumbled in many places and so had not discharged rainwater efficiently.
• Many of the iron nails holding the slates had rusted (after 200 years!). Slates had shifted in places, were no longer secure and in danger of falling.

These were the main findings and why the roof needed repair and replacement. It was something we could not ignore and hope that it would go away.

"The building is not an end, but a tool in our work for God's Kingdom"