Bedfordshire lead-theft church restarts work on felt roof replacement

Work to completely cover All Saints Church in a high tensile felt is set to take several weeks, after it the lead was stripped in October 2018 (right)

A Grade I listed church which had 20 tonnes of roof lead stolen has restarted work on installing a felt replacement.

The £35,000 high-tensile covering on the 14th Century All Saints Church in Houghton Conquest, Bedfordshire, is expected to last 40 years.

Gary Mudd, one of the church wardens, said the coating was the only "viable" option after the 2018 lead theft.

"We can't afford an estimated £300,000 new steel roof", he said.

Garry Mudd said looking after and maintaining the church is "always a daunting prospect"

Phase one of the work was completed in November 2019 and workers returned in the middle of February to start work on the next stage on the nave.

All work has been approved by Historic England, Mr Mudd said.

Until the work was completed, water would still be able to get into the building and its plasterwork, he added.

"We're now more hopeful," he said.

"There's still a lot more work to do but at least we'll be dry and watertight for services and events when we are allowed to reopen."

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The church committee is now fundraising for work including a new boiler and heating system costing £40,000, the repointing of the South Wall for £70,000, repairs to plaster work that has been water damaged and the upgrading of the electrics and lights.

It is hoped the latest work will keep the church watertight and save it from more damage