Beeston Church Restoration Secures RICS Award for Latham Architects

Derby, United Kingdom, June 03, 2009 --(PR.com)-- A restoration and redevelopment project which transformed Beeston Parish Church in Nottinghamshire has been highly commended in prestigious annual building awards.

The scheme, which was designed by Derby-based architects Lathams, replaced the dark, tired and outdated interior of the church and created in its place a bright flexible space for modern worship and community use.

The £860,000 project was highly commended in the East Midlands Conservation category of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Awards.

Project architect Derek Latham said: “We are delighted that the judges recognised this project.

“The key to success at Beeston was to retain an understanding and respect for the building as a place of continuity with the past, and then place alongside that the careful and considered management of change.

“The result is a scheme which ensures a secure future for the building in its original function as a place of gathering and worship.”

The restoration scheme started with the removal of the existing pews, choir stalls, electric organ, flooring and false organ pipes, as well as the cleaning of the ceiling and stonework. The nave and aisle floors were transformed with a Junkers oak boarded floor with underfloor heating, and the Early English stone font was removed from its concrete dias and relocated in the centre of the nave. A new dias with a removable sectional communion rail was constructed in the east end of the nave.

A new nave altar table, lectern and three ceremonial chairs were specially commissioned in oak and ebony, and new built-in furniture was designed to be unobtrusive and consistent, with a simple style carried out in oak and oak veneer.

A new lighting system featured low-energy lighting and electronic controls with scene-setting technology to accentuate the bright open spaces and the newly-revealed stone features, ceilings and walls.

Latahams then created a completely new space by redesigning the former choir vestry and organ chamber area, installing a new first floor to serve as a meeting area and Sunday school room. Finally, the west end of the church was redesigned to incorporate some of the functions of the church hall, including a new kitchen and storage cupboards, and toilet facilities were formed within the entrance porch at the base of the bell tower.

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