Some of our expert team of roofers have taken up residence on the Isle of White, no not for a holiday, they are working on the roofs of the ancient catholic Quarr Abbey.
History
Quarr Abbey was founded in 1132, then closed in 1356 by order of King Henry VIII and later demolished. Some of its stone was used in the building of Yarmouth Castle. The ruins of the original medieval buildings are a national treasure on the Isle of White.
In the early 1900s, a magnificent new abbey was created next door to the ruins, designed by monk-architect Dom Bellot, who created a place of worship that is full of light.
Today the abbey is home to a silent order of Benedictine monks, as well as being open to the public for visits, tours, and worship. There is also a guest house, youth camping site, visitors’ centre, tea shop, farm shop and vast gardens and grounds to explore.
Our work
We commenced our restoration work on the abbey in November 2021 with the erection of scaffolding around the South Choir and the North and South Chapels. Our team has started to renew the lead work and refurbish the cast iron rainwater goods. In January we will strip the existing tiles before re-roofing the buildings using plain clay tiles.
We are working in conjunction with a specialist from Birmingham to refurbish the stain glass windows of the South Choir and providing decorators to paint the building’s other window frames.
Logistics
Unlike most of our other work, which is predominately based on the South West of England mainland, this work is on an island, which means complex logistics are involved. All our workers, tools, tiles, lead, and other materials must be transported across the water to the Isle of White. We have contracted a haulier firm to assist with this.
The lead removed from the abbey buildings will be transported back to our workshop in Somerset, to be molten down and recast using our specialist sand-cast lead facility.
Even the stain glass windows will have to make the trip across the Solant and up to Birmingham, where they’re being restored.
Why choose West Country Tiling
Our master roofers have over 30 years’ experience, gaining extensive knowledge and expertise from working on historical roof restorations.
If you need our experienced team to restore your roof, please get in touch on 01373 462 224 or by emailing us on info@westcountrytiling.com.