FIRE-RAVAGED CHURCH JOINS ‘AT RISK’ SITES
Historic building only new entry this year
A CHURCH which was gutted by a fire earlier this year has been added to Historic England’s Heritage at Risk register.
St John the Evangelist in Trent Vale joins 14 other city sites on the charity’s list of properties in danger.
CCTV footage showed flames engulfing the 170-year-old church in the middle of the night in April this year - and nearby residents were woken by the sound of an ‘explosion’ from the building. Following an investigation, the cause of the fire was believed to be accidental – the result of an electrical appliance fault.
The church is the only new entry on the register in Stokeon-trent this year. Other historic properties on the list include the Price and Kensington works at Longport, Bethesda Chapel in Hanley, the Wedgwood Institute in Burslem, and Trentham Hall, just outside the city boundary.
In Newcastle borough there are just two buildings on the register – the model farm at Betley Old Hall and the gatehouse, walls and bollards at Maer Hall – while the engine house and boiler house at Mill Meece Pumping Station, near Eccleshall, are also on the list.
No buildings have been removed from the list in Stokeon-trent this year. Last year Ford Green Hall in Smallthorne was taken off the register after a £91,000 restoration project.
Across the wider West Midlands, 13 sites were saved and 13 sites were added to the Heritage at Risk register in 2022, while Historic England awarded £1,220,523 in repair grants to 11 sites in the region.
Louise Brennan, from Historic England, said: “It is central to Historic England’s mission that we pass on to future generations the rich legacy of historic buildings and places that we have inherited from previous generations. Our Heritage at Risk programme is a key contributor to this ambition.
“As the threat of climate change grows, the reuse and the sensitive upgrading of historic buildings and places becomes ever more important.
“Finding new uses for buildings and sites rescued from the Register avoids the high carbon emissions associated with demolishing structures and building new.
“With the help of local communities and partners, imaginative thinking and business planning, we can bring historic places back to life in the West Midlands.”