Thomasons completed on the reinstatement of The Church of the Ascension, Lower Broughton after an arson attack in February 2017 gutted the Grade II listed building. The fire consumed all timber elements including the various roofs, timber suspended floors and internal screens etc and, most significantly, the heat of the fire caused extensive damage to the stone columns that supported the main nave walls.
As a practice with extensive experience of both restoration of fire damage and heritage buildings, we were appointed to provide structural engineering and project management services for the reinstatement of the church.
We have worked closely with project architects, Buttress, and M&E consultants Viridian, and we were proud to have our work recognised at The IStructE’s North West Structural Awards in 2021, winning the Innovation Award for our work on the project.
Since completion of the external building works in December 2020, the focus has been on restoring and refitting the internal space. The opportunity for reordering the church was taken comprising new kitchen and WC facilities and the provision of loose adaptive furniture giving the church the flexibility to accommodate various event types. The church now benefits from underfloor heating throughout and a modern lighting and sound system.
The building was handed back to the church on Friday 30th September 2022 and the first service taking place on Sunday 2nd October 2022.
