RW Armstrong Appointed Main Contractor for £8m All Saints, Kingston Redevelopment

Feb. 12, 2013 - PRLog -- Work starts in earnest at a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday, Monday 11th February, attended by TV presenter Angellica Bell and Mary Heathcote, the Mayor of Kingston, together with representatives from main contractor RW Armstrong.

When complete, the development project will transform All Saints Church into a revitalised centre for heritage and community at the heart of Kingston.  A new heritage and interpretation room will for the first time tell visitors the full story of this historic site, from the crowning of Saxon Kings in the tenth century through to the present day.   Access to the church will be made easier and the floor levelled.  And the interior of the church will be completely refurbished, with new lighting and heating and facilities including toilets and a refreshment bar, to make it more attractive both to visitors and to the thousands of local residents who use it as a place of worship, a concert hall, or just a place to relax and reflect away from the hurly burly of the town centre.

In the first phase of work, which is supported by grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Mayor of London’s Outer London Fund, ASK will create two entrances on the North side of the church, facing Clarence Street.  One of these doors will be made by reopening the North-West porch, currently used as a boiler room; the other will recreate an entrance which has not been used since the early nineteenth century.    The choir vestry will be completely refurbished so that it can also serve as the heritage and interpretation room, and new toilets will be installed in the North-West porch.

The Heritage Lottery Fund grant will also be used to support a programme of heritage activities in the church under the leadership of a heritage and learning officer who will be recruited for the purpose.

In the second phase of work, which will start later in the year if sufficient funds can be raised, ASK will reorder and redecorate the interior of the church, level the floors, and install new heating and lighting and a refreshment bar.  The £2m “Angels” fundraising campaign launched by Angellica Bell in November, which takes its inspiration from the wooden angels in the church roof, is designed to raise the money necessary to allow ASK to proceed with this second phase of the project.

Notes for editors

The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) sustains and transforms a wide range of heritage through innovative investment in projects with a lasting impact on people and places. As the largest dedicated funder of the UK’s heritage, with around £375million a year to invest in new projects and a considerable body of knowledge, it is also a leading advocate for the value of heritage to modern life.  Since 1994, HLF has supported over 33,000 projects allocating £5billion across the UK.  Further information is available at www.hlf.org.uk.

This project is one of four in Kingston receiving support from the Mayor's Outer London Fund, which is helping increase the vibrancy and growth of high street places across London.  The other three projects are:

·         Kingston Ancient Market – enhancements to the Ancient Market will combine subtly toned new granite paving, stylish but functional street furniture and a creative lighting scheme to create an inclusive public space with character and drama. There will also be brand new market stalls which will provide a much better working environment for the market traders and open up views of the Market House building.

·         Kingston tourism development – a programme of work by Kingstonfirst to promote Kingston as a major tourist attraction; and

·         Creative Youth – converting the Bishop’s Palace car park and loading bay into a flexible outdoor performance space.

For further information see www.london.gov.uk/outerlondonfund.

The Angels fundraising campaign was launched by its patron, Angellica Bell, on 14 November 2012.  For further details of the campaign, and of the project generally, please visit our website www.WhereEnglandBegan.co.uk.

For information about the contractors please see www.rwarmstrong.co.uk.  

ASK Development Trust is a registered charity, no 1146858.