Retaining the original features of period properties is increasingly becoming a major consideration, for planning officers, when it comes to the refurbishment of older housing stock. This is especially relevant with regard to environmental issues such as home insulation and the maintenance of the building’s external fabric.
We recently completed a further project with Energy saving specialists, Rockwarm on behalf of their client, Bromfield Housing Association. They were principal contractor for the installation of external wall insulation to eight aged properties in Lichfield, Staffordshire.
Lichfield, 16 miles north of Birmingham, is notable for its three-spired medieval cathedral and being the birthplace of Samuel Johnson, who created the first definitive English language dictionary. The City centre contains over 230 listed buildings including many fine Georgian examples and is proud of its historical character.
Although this project was not located in one of Lichfield’s 22 conservation areas, Rockwarm
involved the Local Authorities conservation team and historical society, from the outset, to advise on undertaking the work as sympathetically as possible in order to retain the individual character of each home.
This was something the tenants and Bromfield HA felt strongly about. It was also the wish of Edward Higgins, Lichfield DC’s Conservation and Design Officer, who said that replicating external features of the property to match the surrounding houses would be of major benefit.
We were asked to design and manufacture bespoke stone – effect window cills for each of the properties that would complement both the existing façade and the specified Permarock brick-slip finish.
This resulted in a successful planning permission granted without any local objections.
Our Stone-Coat architectural mouldings are made from a lightweight material that can be manufactured in almost any shape or size. Produced in our South Yorkshire factory, the material is coated with a unique material that ensures it looks like stone, feels like stone but is considerably lighter than natural stone.
This provides for a safe and easy installation that does not require heavy equipment and specialist skill tradespeople.
Are you interested in Stone-Coat? At Build-Lite, we can help. For more information, contact us today.
