St Peters Church
Petersfield, Hampshire
- Developer: The Parochial Church Council
- Architect: Stonewest (Cleaning & Repair work)
- Project Manager: David Francomb, Church Authority
- Main Contractor: FW German & Sons
- Masonry Contractor: King Ceramics, Alan King
- Material: Independent Bottom Whitbed and Independent Basebedd
Comprises a refurbishment and replacement floor to church, altar and entrance, with approximately 800m 2 of Independent Bottom Whitbed and Independent Basebed tiles being supplied
St Peter's Church in Petersfield was beginning to go into a decline and the Parochial Church Council decided at this point that the Church needed to become more in tune with the needs of the community and a focal point which would be more than just a place of worship. The Harrison Young Partnership were appointed as Architects to implement the refurbishment.
The Architects visited Albion 's Factory and Quarries in December 1999 to select stone and discuss the project. After reviewing technical details they selected Independent Bottom Whitbed and Independent Basebed for the flooring for its durability and aesthetics.
Albion Stone supplied approximately 360m 2 of Independent Bottom Whitbed tiles and approximately 90m 2 of Independent Basebed tiles. Treads and risers were also made of Independent Basebed.
The existing floor of the church was a mismatch of iron grills from the previous heating system, Victorian tiles, timber and carpet. The Main Contractor, FW German & Sons, began the preparation for the laying of the stone and under-floor heating and on the removal of the existing timber floor discovered concealed brick sided graves and burial vaults, which could not be disturbed.
The solution was to lay the Portland Stone as a beam and block construction. Large reinforced concrete strip foundations were used to span the graves and burial vaults, thus spreading the load and supporting the sleeper walls under the beams. The stone was then laid with the expansion joints exactly over the underlying joints to avoid the stone cracking. Once the stone was laid, the Architect following advise from Albion Stone decided not to seal the stone floor as the foot traffic would eventually hone the stone and seal the surface naturally.
The project was completed in September 1999 and a rededication service held by the Bishop of Portsmouth took place in October 1999 with all the project team members in attendance.
Peter Harrison of the Harrison Young Partnership commented “we are extremely pleased with the finished project. The mixture of Portland stones on the floor has given texture and light to what could otherwise have been a bland expanse and has unified the interior of the church reflecting its mediaeval qualities. The advice and assistance given by Albion Stone was invaluable. The whole project team worked very hard to achieve the results we see today and to overcome problems such as burial vaults and brick sided graves in the existing church floor, we are all extremely pleased with the finished result it looks very nice indeed". He added, “since the completion of the project nearly a year ago the floor is still very striking. We took the advice of Bryan Adams the Production Director at Albion Stone and decided not to seal the stone. It has aged beautifully and now has a fine polished surface and has appeared to seal itself".