July News

• When the 204 individual copper petals were all united, lit and raised to form the Cauldron at the Olympic Games 2012 opening ceremony, what a spectacle of truly fabulous design it was to behold!  All of us at KPT will be following the Olympics, and Paralympics and willing Team GB to win lots of medals.
• At the 15^th Century Hall House in Essex, scaffold has been erected.  As render has been removed, excitingly large beams and mid rail have been exposed. The removal of the cement render has revealed that the house originally had two jettied gables, which must have been underbuilt as flush gables in the Georgian/Victorian period. We’ve also discovered an old C 18^th doorway in the brickwork, with a rubbed and gauged header 
• Working drawings are being produced for the main staircase of the Court Barn.
• The restoration of Finchingfield Guildhall continues with wattle and daub being exposed: The original daub was laboratory analysed in order to ensure that the new daub will be an authentic mix.  The ingredients are clay, chalk, fine quartz sand, lime and a lot of chopped straw. This is thoroughly mixed and then thrown and smoothed by hand.
• The design stage for works to a beautiful brick and timber framed Grade II* farmhouse in North Herts are progressing well.
• Planning Permission, with Restricted Use (ie affiliated with an equestrian business), has been granted for a new-build family house in the style of a timber framed barn in Huntingdonshire.
• Glazing in the Bell Tower at Grade I Listed St. Andrew’s Church, Shalford, (to ensure free access for Soprano Pipistrelle bats to their maternity roosts http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Soprano_Pipistrelle ), has gone out to tender.
• Repairs and internal layout changes at the Grade II listed farmhouse are now complete and the new oak sunroom with copper roof and timber framed utility extension has started on site.
• Designs are underway for a new-build house in the Lee Valley.
• At the Grade I Country House in Suffolk, Planning Permission and Listed Building Consent has been granted for a new breakfast room extension on the service wing with modern bi-fold doors.
• Concept design drawings for a new gabled glazed timber frame sunroom with a veranda style link to the Annexe have been completed for a Grade II, 19^th century house in Bedfordshire.
• We are thrilled to announce that KPT has been shortlisted in the AJ Retrofit 2012 Awards, Listed Buildings/Structures category, for our Spains Hall Entry.
• We are also delighted that HHA/Sotheby’s Restoration Award 2012 have awarded us a Commendation for our work to Spains Hall.  http://www.hha.org.uk/focus-on-properties/hha-sothebys-restoration-award.html
• As part of her dissertation on smock mills of Essex, Nicola will be visiting the fascinating local windmills of Upminster http://www.upminsterwindmill.co.uk and Ashdon http://www.ashdonwindmilltrust.co.uk
• The 10k Race for Life which was to be held at the Chelmsford Hylands Park on Sunday 22^nd July, 2012, has been postponed until Sunday, 16^th September.  Nicola says, with the extra training time, she expects to complete in even quicker time!  If you’re in the area, do go along and shout encouragement to her! Embarrassing photographs will now be posted in September Images of the Month!  http://www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/nicolahiggins365