Historic cottage repaired by construction students

The stables at Delapré Abbey with be turned into a multi-purpose space for wellbeing, retail and community events

A historic site dating back 900 years has started a project to restore and repurpose its abandoned 19th Century stables.

As part of the project called A Stable Future, the Delapré Abbey Preservation Trust in Northampton has asked construction apprentices and students from Northampton College to get involved.

They will work on restoring and converting a cottage into offices for psychology and therapy services.

Amanda Nicols, the abbey's head of commercial projects and operations, said: "It will be a live construction site for the students where they can focus on heritage construction skills and play a part in addressing the UK's heritage construction skills gap."

Mark Bradshaw from Northampton College said the majority of UK construction students "never get the opportunity to work on older buildings"

The college team will repair Gardener's Cottage Number Two over the next 12 months.

The students will fix doors and windows, carry out brickwork, plumbing and decorating as well as hard landscaping in the garden.

There will also be opportunities for the students to work on other buildings in the stables.

Mark Bradshaw, the college's curriculum manager for construction, said: "It's fantastic that our students have been given the opportunity.

"The majority of construction apprentices in this country work on new housing developments and never get the opportunity to work on older buildings.

"[In] this project, our students and apprentices will learn so many heritage construction skills which are hugely in demand."