Adopt, Adapt, and Reuse (look up - look down)

By Barry Richardson

This week, we're returning to the present day, with a progress update of work inside St. Mary’s.  My visit this week was a rare chance to look up to see works in progress, and to look down and examine fine detail.

The Re-Awakening Project is a vast undertaking and after reporting big ticket items, many smaller workstreams are now underway as works start to visibly return St Mary’s to a more ‘recogniseable’ state, rather than the building site it has necessarily been for nearly ten months.

The Grade I listing means that every piece of work is required to be handled with great sensitivity and respect for materials and the integrity of the building itself, carefully balancing preservation of those materials and structures, with the considered addition of a 21st-century footprint.

It was fascinating to see many skills in use - work we would recognise in a modern house build or extension—such as scaffolding (admittedly super scaled) , plastering, inspecting beams, tiling floors, carpentry and electrical works, all to restore and augment a building that is centuries old.

A New South Transept Scaffolding Tower

The majority of the South Transept—the area nearest Newark Marketplace—is being filled with scaffolding, possibly for the first time since Sir George Gilbert Scott’s (Victorian) restoration in the 1850s. 

This will provide access for essential plaster repairs, roof beam inspections, and window cleaning.

It's probably an incredible vantage point from which to appreciate the scale of the building, as those who have enjoyed the different perspectives afforded from Tower Tours or Hard Hat Tours can testify.

French Polishing the Pews

Some pews (part of the Victorian restoration), have been shortened to create more open space for the café and Magnus Room and to maintain the flow of the Church by re-using existing materials.

New pew ends have been expertly french-polished, with the work being so seamless and in-keeping that, despite extremely precise location instructions, I walked past it six times before giving up and asking to be taken to the work.

Respecting heritage while delivering adjustments is undoubtedly difficult and this work demonstrates in a highly visible way how both masters can be served.  We were reminded that it will develop its own patina over the years, blending discretely into the church's existing look—I quietly reflected that it seemed that it already did so. I had also naively assumed that all Church woodwork was wood-stained (think Ronseal), but in yet another lesson for me—nothing is ever quite what it appears to be.

Tiling the Café Area

As the cafe and toilet block takes shape, I could look down and see progress restoring tiled areas.

Many floor tiles have been removed in the Nave and surrounding areas during restoration and repurposing works, leaving a patchwork of unfinished edges and missing tiles throughout. 

It was particularly satisfying to see some of the original tiles being re-laid in what will become the new café area. This careful re-laying of original tiles ensures the floor’s character, continuity and history are preserved, yet also minimising waste and replacement cost.

The Magnus Room

The internal scale of St. Mary's is so vast that the new Magnus Room can seem like a small (if perfectly formed) addition, much like the beautiful modern vestries we see in many village churches. 

While I'd previously recognised its generous proportions, today I stepped inside the newly framed space and was struck by its size and potential for the first time, as the church shrank back to become the background and the room became my focus.

The room will be air-source heated as part of St. Mary’s “greening” works, helping the church move towards carbon-neutrality, as it will be powered by the solar installation that is already commissioned as part of the Reawakening works.

In Summary

The Reawakening Project is delivering a watertight, eco-friendly, and adapted building that will adopt new roles by adapting its internal space and reusing many existing materials. 

Through adjusting the pews and carefully relaying original tiles, the Re Awakening Project demonstrates deep respect for preservation of the character and nature of St Marys, returning this magnificent building to as close to its original state as possible, whilst delivering the change needed to write the untold next chapters of its’ history.

Next Blog: In the next blog, I will continue our exploration of some of the artifacts within the church that make St. Mary's a place of national significance, and how they connect to the Reawakening of this majestic building.