2 C O N T E X T 9 0 : J U LY 2 0 0 5 Context Briefing Copy deadlines Context is published five times a year, in March, May, July, September and November. Remaining copy deadlines in 2005 are: Issue Date September, Issue 91 15 July November, Issue 92 16 September Churchyard monuments at risk A recent survey of over 250 Grade I and Grade II* buildings and structures in South Somerset revealed that, of the 22 churchyard monuments and crosses included, 19 were in fair, poor or very poor condition, and were at risk. There are a further 470 Grade II listed churchyard monuments, and if the figures for Grade I and II* structures are extrapolated there could be something in the region of 420 listed churchyard monuments at risk. The type of remedial work required varies from removal of vegetation and repointing to complete dismantling and reconstruction. Churchyard monuments are clearly a vulnerable type of structure. Very often the families of the deceased can not be tracked down. Although conservation work to such structures is often comparatively inexpensive, Editor Robert Cowan Editorial Coordinator Nigel Barker, 65Worplesdon Road, Guildford, Surrey GU2 9RT. Tel 01483 562 851 email [email protected] Editorial Board Nigel Barker (chair) Susan Brook (treasurer and IT) Nigel Crowe (main features) Peter de Figueiredo (book reviews) Julia Smith (IHBC branches) Michael Taylor (main features) Cartoons by Robert Cowan Context is distributed to all members of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation. © Institute of Historic Building Conservation 2005 ISSN 0958-2746 Publisher Published for the Institute of Historic Building Conservation by Cathedral Communications Limited, High Street, Tisbury,Wiltshire, England SP3 6HA Tel 01747 871717 Fax 01747 871718 email [email protected] www.buildingconservation.com Non-member subscriptions to Context Context is available to non-members of the IHBC at an annual subscription rate, including postage, of: United Kingdom £50.00 Elsewhere £75.00 Subscription orders, together with remittances payable to Institute of Historic Building Conservation, should be sent to the IHBC Business Office at Jubilee House, High Street, Tisbury, Wiltshire SP3 6HA. The views expressed in Context are not necessarily those held by the IHBC nor the publisher. Neither the publisher nor the IHBC shall be under any liability whatsoever in respect of contributed articles. We gratefully acknowledge the support of firms whose advertisements appear throughout this publication.While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this issue of Context is current and correct, neither the IHBC nor the publisher can be held responsible for any errors or omissions which may occur. many parishes struggle to cope with maintaining the main church building, so there is little, if any, money available for churchyard structures. Grants are sometimes available, but these usually cover only a proportion of the cost, leaving the hard-pressed parish to find the rest. To address this problem South Somerset District Council set aside £15,000 from the Historic Buildings Grant budget to establish a Churchyard Monuments at Risk Grant Scheme. The scheme will run for three years from April 2004. The council was lucky in attracting some partnership funding from St Andrews Conservation Trust, which has pledged £1,000 a year, bringing the total fund available to £18,000 over three years. Jonathon McKechnie-Jarvis, who runs a similar scheme for table tombs in the Diocese of Gloucester, provided helpful advice. The scheme applies to listed churchyard monuments including chest tombs, headstones and crosses. Other listed structures such as lych gates and boundary walls are not eligible. In most cases the work eligible for grant aid will be the minimum necessary to stabilise the monument and slow down deterioration. The work may include all or some of the following: removing ivy and other woody plants growing in the joints; repointing; consolidating footings; removing iron cramps and fixings, and replacing with stainless steel; dowelling fractured stones; mortar repairs to eliminate water traps; consolidating friable stone; and dismantling and reconstruction. The rate of grant is 75 per cent for Grade II listed monuments and 95 per cent for Grade I and II* structures. It is hoped that offering a high rate of grant for a limited period will spur parochial church councils to tackle their problem monuments sooner rather than later. There was considerable interest in the scheme when it was launched, but only one project was completed in the first year. However, it is expected that there will be greater take up this year as there are several applications in the pipeline. Although the total amount of money available is small in comparison to the likely scale of the problem, the council hopes that the scheme will draw attention to the plight of churchyard monuments and may help to secure additional funding from charitable trusts. Grant offers are subject to the parochial church council agreeing to submit an annual maintenance checklist to ensure that the monument receives appropriate aftercare. It is hoped that this will also raise awareness of the need for maintenance of other monuments in the same churchyard. The scheme may spark the enthusiasm of some parishes to pursue additional funding, such as the Local Heritage Initiative, taking into account the wider conservation potential of graveyards, including their wildlife and green space value. Alison Henry, historic buildings advisor with South Somerset District Council A churchyard monument before and after.
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