Smart motorways and accidents.

[DaveNP]

Originally Posted by john.wigley

You would think so, wouldn't you, Thomas. Another example for you:

Our church tower roof needed replacing last year as it was leaking like a sieve and as a result the timber beams supporting it had rotted (they had been there for circa 400 years). It was made of lead, is 90 feet up (inaccessible without scaffolding) and only visible from above.

Despite more modern materials being available that are lighter, stronger and much cheaper, we had no choice but to replace it like for like in order to comply with church rules and listed building status.

Regards, John.

So glad our church building, being an ex-community centre built in the 70's, was defined by the council's conservation officer as being 'of no significant architectural merit'. Hopefully the planning committee approve our new design which is a Cross Laminated Timber building with a sheet zinc roof and terracotta cladding on the exterior walls. The CLT structure is a bit radical for the UK and has been slightly contentious but the Buildings group felt we should be prepared to build something which was not only a good church building but also was good environmentally and architecturally. I do find the insistence on not making any changes to old church buildings quite bizarre, we're quite happy to visit and marvel at the Norman arches in the earliest bit, the Perpendicular windows in the later bit and the Victorian rood screen etc, but it's as if the 20th century Church forgot how to build.