Old Churches get a committee worthy of the roof
Old Churches across England now have six new or returning trust members helping to protect historic buildings. The medieval roofs responded by leaking with the calm authority of structures that have outlived every previous strategy.
The King approved appointments and reappointments to the Churches Conservation Trust. The trust cares for historic churches. Its members bring heritage, finance, legal and property experience, which should prove useful when a wall has held the same position since before the concept of a risk register.
The appointments run to 2028 or 2029. This is an admirably long planning horizon in a country where a twelfth century gutter may still be awaiting approval for a sensible bucket.
The gargoyle attends the board meeting
“The roof has provided an indoor shower since 1742,” said Canon Algernon Drip Tray, Warden of Ecclesiastical Buckets. “We aim to persuade rain that the congregation is not a drainage feature.”
Historic churches carry architecture, craftsmanship and local memory. Protecting them needs specialist judgement and funding. The joke rests with modern governance language meeting a building that regards four hundred years as a minor delay.
At the first meeting, trustees reviewed risk and sustainability. A gargoyle was listed as drainage infrastructure and the only participant willing to say clearly where the water was going.
One finance expert asked whether a flying buttress counted as support. The buttress continued holding up the building. This was judged the most decisive contribution of the afternoon.
The maintenance plan reaches the middle ages
The trust’s work looks after the fabric of the buildings rather than any passing fashion for turning a Norman arch into a statement breakfast bar. Ancient stone has already endured enough trends.
The church will receive experienced oversight. The roof has asked to be copied into future correspondence, having carried the entire project for centuries without once receiving a staff survey.
Read the real story: The official trustee appointments.
