In 2021 we sought to engage an architect to partner with us on this project. We drafted an Invitation to Tender with specific reference to our vision for the building – that it was to be far more community focused than it has been previously. We asked 4 practices to bid and had 3 positive replies. We received presentations from each of the practices which were reviewed by members of the Project Team together with others from the Church and a number of external stakeholders. The formal submissions were reviewed and an assessment undertaken.

We chose to go with Crosby Granger Architects Ltd, a local company based in Kendal.

One of the first tasks we asked of Crosby Granger was to undertake a comprehensive survey of the Church building.

The St Mary’s Church Council agreed a plan of work to address the issues found by the Crosby Granger survey and to allow the building to be more

creatively and sustainably utilised for the benefit of the local community, visitors and the Ministry and Mission of the church

This plan of work is in 3 phases as follows.

Phase 0 has been primarily about fixing the issues with the drainage, repairing the roof on the organ blower housing and surveying the west tower door.

We have been supported in Phase 0 by a number of key partners including

• Crosby Granger Architects Ltd of Kendal
• Fawcett Percolation Services Ltd
• Stephen Hall Groundworks and Excavations
• DEC Costruction Ltd

This work has cost around £40,000 and has been supported by grants from the National Churches Trust and the Buildings for Missions MR&I Grants Fund of the Archbishop’s Council as well as some of the financial reserves of the Church. In addition we have had funding from Westmorland and Furness Council in support of audio-visual equipment to support the programme of events being run by St Mary’s Church – see https://stmarysevents.kirkbylonsdale.org

The work on Phase 1 is primarily about protecting the tower to stop water ingress and to reinstall the clock.

Following comprehensive consultation with our architect, a lime work consultant and Historic England, the decision has been taken to repoint the tower and protect it with a lime render. The picture below is an engraving of St Mary’s Church based on a watercolour of 1835 by Ralph Croft, seemingly expressing the church as plastered.

We are also very keen to reinstall the clock, a feature of the Church which has been missing from the town for a few years. We will also take the opportunity to create a temporary Parish Office and add a basin and glass washer to the kitchen.

Through our architects, we have put out the repair of the tower to tender and have a contractor lined up to start in the spring. We are anxiously trying to organise grants and other support for the work.

The next phase of the work, Phase 2, is to repair the roof, replace the bell frame and reorder the internal parts of the building to allow better community use.