The best way to thief-proof a church roof
sir – There are reasons why Parochial Church Council members in a village like Pickwell in Leicestershire would choose to reroof a historic church with Sarnafil polymer rather than lead (“Churchwarden who repaired plundered roof faces court bill,” report, July 21).
A polymer is not only far cheaper, but also, unlike lead, it has no value for metal thieves, who are devastating church communities.
Our experience was that reroofing with lead is a waste of time and money; the thieves return annually, almost as if they had made a diary note. It is like feeding the birds: put out more and they come back for it.
We successfully applied last year for legal permission to reroof our listed church with Sarnafil. However, months of volunteer time were wasted in bureaucratic delays. Historic England’s idealistic anti-polymer policy was used as a barrier to deter us. Happily, our church architect and senior clergy were supportive and pragmatic. The rector strongly believed in a metal-free future for the whole Church.
We were lucky that our church escaped water damage during 18 months under tarpaulin. We can understand why churches such as Pickwell might, if water was coming in, be strongly tempted to act immediately, and only apply for permission retrospectively.
Other churches told us of problems with steel roofs – notably interruption of services by the noise of rain. This firmly convinced us that Historic England’s preference for steel (not a traditional roofing material) is in urgent need of reform.
Metal theft is a nationwide problem. The Church cannot waste more volunteer time and donations. Nor can it attract volunteers by penalising those who have, in practice, taken sensible steps to protect a heritage building and keep it open for public use. A change of policy is desperately needed from the Church Buildings Council and Historic England.
Emma Robarts
Great Hormead, Hertfordshire