Spiral Staircase Appeal

March 1, 2024

Spiral Staircase   After two years of meetings, planning, form filling and endless emails the PCC have been granted a faculty for the installation of the spiral staircase and connected works. The staircase is to replace the existing ladder which no longer complies with health and safety rules and will be used to access the tower for maintenance work only and is not for public access. The Friends Trustees are fully supportive of the intended work which includes:

·       Decorating the tower area

·       Moving lighting and switches

·       Foundations for the staircase

·       Installation of the spiral staircase.

The cost of the work will be in the region of £36,750 +VAT-- yes it’s a lot of money, but working together we can make this happen. The Friends have promised a minimum of £10,000 as a grant towards this project, which we have already raised. The PCC will be initiating a fund-raising programme and applying for grants, but the Friends  will continue with a fundraising push in the hope we can add to the £10,000 so that all the work approved can be completed , including decorating the tower area. There are 5 events planned plus a Chairman’s Challenge to members. Please see events tab for details or the Church Room notice board. Good news on the VAT -The Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme have indicated that most of the VAT can be reclaimed.

February 2024 The Trustees have agreed a grant of £2000 to be paid ti the PCC of St. Lawrence Church to help with costs of emergency repairs to the soffits on the south chanel wall. The work is to be completed Feruary/ March 2024.

November 2022 Unfortunately a hole appeared in the soffit on the north transept east wall at St Lawrence Church. As the old material contained asbestos, the complete length had to be replaced. The architect also advised that as the scaffolding was up , it would be a good time to replace the plastic guttering with cast iron. At same time a small hole appeared in the east wall of the nave, which also had to be dealt with. The Friends were able to give the PCC £6860 towards the cost of this emergency work.

May 2022 At last, the external face of the south porch doors have been restored and painted. Work has also started on the final phase of the internal reordering of the South Transept. The two radiators have been moved and construction of the new cupboards are under way.

July 2020 Hooray! After delays due to high winds and then the Covid shut down the works to the tower rainwater dispersal system and other related jobs are complete. The Friends have granted the PCC £15,000 towards this work. The Friends have also responded to the PCC with a grant of £1,130 to cover the emergency repairs needed to the outside of the south transept. See various pictures below.

July 2020 Emergency repair work to outer lead flashing following appearance of damp patch on south transept internal wall.

July 2020 Changes to the water chute and hopper cage

July 2020 The pictures below show the damage to bricks under the tiles on the tower buttress and the subsequent repairs.

February 2020

At last the scaffolding is going up so that the builders can make a start on the rain dispersal system for the tower. Don’t think I would like to climb to the top! i believe there is still more to go up.

January 2020

Church Maintenance Work At long last the various permissions have been given  for the improvements to the  dispersal of rainwater from the church tower. The Friends have given a sizeable grant to the PCC to help cover the cost of this work which is due to start late January. The Friends will now discuss future projects with the PCC.

June 2019

Tower rainwater drainage. Since the new room was built a problem has occurred with the dispersal of rainwater from the tower. It was thought originally that allowing the water to drop from the tower chutes on to the roof of the new extension would be adequate, but unfortunately the rainwater is bouncing back onto the nave and tower walls and will eventually cause problems with the structure. The PCC are therefore in the process of applying to remedy this with the use of downpipes from the chutes. Unfortunately this will be quite an expensive job due to the scaffolding required. At present the church architect is working through the necessary red tape.

May 2019

Harvey and Little builders have completed re-tiling the lych gate, which is now looking very smart. Tenders are now being sent out on behalf of the PCC to look at the rain water problem connected with the tower.

March 2019

Good news! The PCC have finally got through all the necessary permissions etc. for the retiling of the lych gate. The Friends have provided a grant to cover the costs and the work is due to commence on Monday 15th April and be completed by the Thursday. I am also pleased to report that the PCC Fabric Committee had a productive meeting with the new architect and are waiting for his suggestions on the way forward with several areas which are needing maintenance work.

July 2018
Three areas have been agreed with the PCC.
1)    Repairs to the lych-gate roof. 
2)    Small maintenance repairs including tiles and guttering of church and boiler room. (completed)
3)    Tower work, including improvements to drainage of rainwater.

The PCC will be applying for the required permissions to complete these various projects.

Church decorating October 2016 The exterior wood and internal redecorations of the church room, toilet,kitchen and porch are now complete. The room is looking very smart. The addition of a dado rail will stop chairs and tables damaging the plaster work of the walls,but we would ask people to take care when stacking equipment at the end of sessions so that the paintwork does not get badly marked again. The work has been funded with a grant from the Friends and half of the proceeds from the PCC gift day.

May 2016 Decoration of extension The Friends and the PCC have agreed to redecorate the new extension. Quotes will be obtained for this job. Further large scale projects are under consideration and will be discussed once the PCC has received expert advice. 

Future Projects January 2016

Windows We are delighted to report that the repairs and cleaning of the stained glass windows have now been completed.  If you are out walking on a sunny day do pop into the church to see how fantastic they look with years of dirt removed! 

North Transept Following a Trustees meeting and consultation with the PCC, it has been agreed that the Friends will fund the new storage cupboards in this transept, together with the staining of all new wood.

South Transept The PCC are trying to move the work forward and once decisions have been made the Friends will consider making grants towards the work.

Small Maintenance Jobs. The PCC has accepted an offer from Bob Coe and Norma Barrow to oversee small maintenance jobs. (This is outside of their Friends work). An initial budget of £500 (£200 from the Friends and £300 from the PCC) has been put aside for this work. The jobs will be identified by a quarterly church inspection. Where possible it will be DIY, otherwise suitable people will be employed. Several small jobs have already been completed.

St Lawrence Church window repairs and cleaning update November 2015

The members of The PCC of St Lawrence Church Bradfield are delighted to have been awarded a grant of £3,000 from the Friends of Essex Churches, which together with funds raised by both the Friends of St Lawrence Church and members of the Church will allow the completion of the restoration and cleaning of the stained glass windows.  The specialist work on the windows is being undertaken by Auravision of Saffron Walden, and related stonework and masonry repairs are being undertaken by Lodge & Sons (Builders) Limited of Stebbing near Dunmow.

 Work is well underway, with the north transept, south chancel and vestry windows having been removed to Auravision's studio for some re-leading and cleaning. The north transept window is now back in place and is looking bright and clean.  The total cost of the work, after anticipated VAT grants under the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, will be over £33,000 and we are extremely grateful for the support and encouragement we have received this past year from both the local community and the Friends of Essex Churches.  We are hoping that the work will be completely finished before the onset of winter. see photos in gallery

Stained Glass Windows - Further update July 2015

Progress is being made. A faculty has now been granted. An application for a grant has been made to the Friends of Essex Churches. The PCC are now waiting for a start date for the work.

Stained Glass Window Update

Quotations had been received from the glaziers for the costs of repairing the stained glass windows. These costs do not include the work necessary to repair the masonry around the windows for which separate quotations are still awaited. The architect is now in the process of drawing up the specifications for the masonry work after which the PCC needs to apply for a faculty, obtain 3 quotes, appoint a contractor and apply for any grants available to help with the cost.  Some additional cleaning of the windows will be required and there will also be a significant cost of scaffolding to enable the repair work to be carried out.  It has been suggested that in order to keep scaffolding costs down it might be better to tackle the windows in perhaps three or four zones.
 It is hoped that the PCC will be now able to progress this project through its various approval stages so that a start to the repair work can begin next spring.

Kitchen Work Top January 2014

This was replaced in January through a grant of £319.25 from the Friends.

Lime Washing 2013

At last the lime washing is done and I hope you are all pleased with the results. There are still a few problems with some coverage but we are looking for this to be put right in 2014 when the weather improves.  The Friends have paid a grant of £10,092 to the PCC for this project.

Roof and Gutter Repairs 2013

A grant was made to the PCC to cover the cost of essential roof and gutter repairs ( £1,250 ) and to replace the boiler room door ( £350 ).

Kitchen Splash Back 2012

The Friends have given a grant of £395 so that a metal splash back can be fitted to the kitchen to aid cleaning. 

Cremated Remains Area 2012

The Friends have given a contribution of £1,050 towards the cost of establishing a new cremated remains area in the church grounds.

New Church Room 2008

Anyone living in the village will not have failed to notice the new extension to the church as it has taken shape over these recent months. Any proposed addition to a building that has played a central role in the life of this community over many centuries will, naturally, be greeted with some apprehension but everyone seems pleased with how well it has fitted into its surroundings. The vision behind these much needed new facilities is that they are for the meeting of the needs, not only of the church, but also of the wider community, and to make the church building a generally more accessible and utilised resource for all.

Over a number of years the Friends gave a total of £57,642 towards the cost of the new Church Room. The room was dedicated on Sunday 5th October by the Bishop of Colchester.

Organ Restoration

The Friends were formed in 2000 and began fund raising for the organ restoration. They were able to donate £35,575 towards the cost of this work  which took place in 2006.