Photographs of the building work in progress
This page includes a series of photographs tracking the progress of the building work. It may be slow to load over dial-up links. You can use the links here to jump to any point in the timeline.
May 1867 | 1950s | Oct 2006 | Nov 2006 | Dec 2006
Feb 2007 | Apr 2007 | May 2007 | June 2007 | Sept 2007
How it all began...this recently-discovered picture is of the foundation stone-laying ceremony, on May 2, 1867. J Sidebottom Esq of Manchester laid the stone. (Further details of the history of the church can be found here.)
This is how the porch looked back in the 1950s. Notice the ornamental pinnacles in a good state of repair.
October 2006: The 21st Century porch, before the work began.
Two recent pictures - see how the stonework has eroded. The need for building work was growing - doing nothing was no longer an option.
November 23, 2006: Demolition of the old porch underway
December 5, 2006: The porch has been removed, the foundations dug and the site is being prepared for the piling contractor to arrive.
Meanwhile, a temporary screen has been erected inside the worship area...
...and the floor behind it removed, ready for the sub-floor and under-floor heating pipes. The picture is looking towards the corner where the kitchen for the community cafe will be built.
A reinforced concrete ring beam has been cast onto the piles, and concrete has been poured into the east end of the sanctuary as a foundation for the kitchen, toilets and gallery. The ring beam took 18 cubic yards - three mixer lorry loads - and the slab inside the church took another 12 cubic yards. Crushed stone was used to fill in around the ring beam, and the picture below shows the sub-floor for the extension being poured - yet more concrete, creating a foundation considerably more substantial than that for the original church! The forms currently filled with sand will be where the steel girders rest on the ring beam.
February 14, 2007: The steel frame for the extension has arrived (after a delay in manufacture) and these pictures show it being erected.
Time marches on (faster than I can keep up to date with taking pictures!) About a month ago, the walls were growing...
The roof is now watertight: the tower roof is complete, and the roofers are working on the lower level, cutting slates.
The door and window frames have been fitted glazing installed, and paint is being applied to walls and woodwork. This area will be landscaped to create a terrace next to the river - an ideal place for a cool drink in summer! If you're wondering about the white pipes inside the building, read on...
The Source will use an underfloor heating system, keeping the heat down where we appreciate it most. The pipes will be covered by a concrete screed and then carpet tiles will be laid over that. (Work is also planned for this summer to install under floor heating in the main church worship area.)
Sept 2007 - The work is complete! This is the view from the outside. Building a brick extension onto a stone church has not been without adverse comment in the town(!) This picture was deliberately chosen to highlight the contrast, which is MUCH less visible as you pass the building in the street. What the picture doesn't show is that the extension (red brick with local limestone banding) fits in much better to the town centre conservation area than the existing church building ever did.
The official opening by the Mayor of Sleaford, Cllr Jack Collings and the Mayoress, Mrs Lorraine Collings, drew a large crowd, temporarily blocking the pavement. The Mayor and Mayoress are pictured with the current minister, The Revd Steve Faber.
Click here to see inside the building...
© 2006-2008 Sleaford United Reformed Church
