Becket’s Chapel Restoration
Becket’s Chapel is a 12th century chapel in Wymondham South Norfolk. It has had a variety of uses over the years including as a grammar school and the town library. More recently it has been used as an art centre for exhibitions but was in urgent need of repairs. In Septemebr 2022 it was taken over by Historic Norfolk and work began to restore it. I volunteered to take photographs of the restoration so that a record of the work could be preserved. The restored chapel is now a wonderful light and airy exhibition space.
View of the chapel from the East
Plaque
South Side
East End ready for work to start
Looking to West End
Old Lobby
Stripping out the floor
Work starts inside
Unused grave in East End possibly intended for the founder of the Chapel
Insulation and underfloor heating installation
Birdcage scaffolding for access to walls and ceiling
Work on hammerbeam roof
Long screws used in the repair
East wall with paint stripped showing repairs and outline of original larger window
Scaffolding going up to enable work on the roof
The roofline was raised to allow insulation to be installed under the tiles
The finished roof with new tiles
Finished and ready for the first exhibition
New floor tiles going down
Phase 1 completed with the new chandeliers
Restoration
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Beckets Chapel is an important building in Wymondham but was slowly falling into disrepair so the restoration project was very welcome. As it is a Grade 1 listed building the work had to meet strict standards using appropriate materials. Previously, non-breathable acrylic paint had been used on the interior walls contributing to damage caused by damp. The restored chapel with the roof insulation and underfloor heating is a much better environment for exhibitions and will also be used for other community events.
Follow this link to Historic Norfolk for more details of Phase 1 of the restoration https://www.historicnorfolk.org.uk/becketsrestorationphase1