Just over 20 years ago, a blaze wrecked everything except the external walls and tower of St Paul’s Church at Armitage Bridge. Today there’s much pride in the completion of a £200,000 project. VAL JAVIN reports

‘The parapet has been replaced in parts where it had got as thin as biscuit’

IT IS one of the area’s prettiest churches, much in demand by tv film-makers as well as by the many organisations who admire not just the building but the warmth of the welcome that they receive there.

Much is done to encourage community use of St Paul’s Church at Armitage Bridge and in addition to the services held there, the church hosts various events and organisations.

But as with all churches, the congregation of St Paul’s faces a continuing fight to maintain the building and keep it where it is needed most, at the heart of its community.

There’s quiet pride at the church at present where a £200,000 project has just been completed to restore its tower roof and masonry.

It is the latest restoration project for a church building which has faced its share of traumas over the years. Just over 20 years ago, a blaze wrecked everything except the external walls and tower of the church, which was built in 1848 to the design of RD Chantrell of Leeds and financed by local textile company owners, the Brook family.

A new interior and church roof were created and the work completed in 1990. But in recent years, parts of the sandstone tower have suffered erosion.

“The pinnacles on the tower were out of line and the parapet which runs around it has been replaced in parts where it had got as thin as biscuit,” said church council member Dennis Chaffer.

The work was not just a facelift but an essential restoration to ensure that the building remains safe and in good condition. The pinnacles on the corner of the tower needed rebuilding and the parapet, which runs around the tower, was also in need of restoration.

Lead thieves, who continue to strike at churches across the area, made life even tougher for hard-pressed fund-raisers who have worked relentlessly to raise money for the church’s up-keep only to find themselves further pressured by lead thefts.

Dennis has been the driving force behind the fund-raising which has included everything from ceilidhs, concerts and rock and roll nights to curry evenings, quizzes and a fashion show. It has been a big effort from the church community and has perhaps helped cement its wider appeal in the Armitage Bridge area.

“We’ve had great support for all the events from many people in the community. And we’ve had people coming to events who said that they were not aware of what is here.”

What Armitage Bridge has is a church that is home not just to a congregation of churchgoers but to a wider community, particularly those with musical interests who appreciate the building’s warm acoustic.

The continued use of the building is dependent on it being maintained in good order and that’s what the church community has been doing with the help of funds from a variety of bodies including English Heritage, the Alan Evans Memorial Fund, the All Churches Foundation Trust, from Kirklees Conservation Department and from the Historic Churches Preservation Trust as well as individual donations from church members.

“This latest work on the tower began in April and was more or less finished by the end of August. The thing that has been really pleasing about the whole project has been the quality of the work that has been done.

“I thought that these sort of craftsmen were just employed at places like York Minister but these guys who have been working on our tower have done some really lovely stuff.

“We had a firm from Manchester and the quality of the workmanship that they do is amazing.”

The work has included structural elements but also some of the more decorative areas of the tower including finials, gargoyles and parts of the parapet moulding.That lead roofing that has proved so attractive to thieves in the past has been replaced with a newer material for which it is thought there will not be the same lucrative second-hand market.

But rather than resting on their laurels, Dennis and the congregation will be looking at more fund-raising ideas.

For weathering and wear and tear continue to take their toll on historic buildings like St Paul’s which remain at the heart of communities fast losing other facilities which once lay at their heart.