This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:
A new lease of life for city church
A Victorian gothic church could be turned into a function hall.
Developer Altaf Gaffar has applied to Leicester City Council for permission to turn Grade II-listed St Saviour's Church, in St Saviour's Road, Spinney Hills, into a venue for events.
The church has been up for sale with an asking price of about £750,000 since March, 2011, after being put on the market by the Leicester Diocesan Board of Finance.
While it still belongs to the diocese, it is standard practice when selling churches for a preferred buyer to be selected, who then submits a planning application with the church, which then has to be approved before the purchase takes place.
A design statement submitted to the council by the developer's agent, Dinesh Tailor, of DT Designs, said the proposed function room would predominantly cater for events on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays, for about 300 people.
It would also be rented out during the week for corporate meetings of up to 100 people.
Mr Tailor wrote: "The aim of the works is to provide the building with the necessary investment needed to arrest the decline in its fabric and ensure an economically viable future.
"All proposed alterations and particularly the internal elements were conceived to respect the existing structure and enable the original identity and purpose to be readily recognised."
The church was built in about 1875 and designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott, the architect responsible for the Midland Grand Hotel, at St Pancras station, and the Albert Memorial, in Kensington Gardens.
The proposal involves demolishing the former church school adjacent to St Saviour's, to make space for a 39-space car park. This was built in 1882 and, after being used as a school, was rented by Leicester City Council as a community centre for about 30 years, until 2008.
The church, which could seat a congregation of 1,000 people, shut in 2005 and has been targeted by vandals.
Mr Tailor's statement added: "The removal of the former community centre building and revised site layout will open the views from the north to display the full extent of the built form."
He also said the renovation would generate work for local tradespeople and the new use would "lead to employment opportunities" for local people.
A spokeswoman for the diocese of Leicester said the application was "good news."
"We care deeply about our buildings, whether they are churches that are in use or no longer in use," she said. "Having a building which will find a new place in the life of Leicester is always good news".
Grahame Lees, spokesman for the Leicester Victorian Society, said the group welcomed plans to bring the building back into use.
"It certainly wants some money spending on it," he said.
"It is a lovely building and hopefully it will be respected. Hopefully, this person will come along and spend the money on it and bring it back into use.
"We never like to see historic buildings sitting empty for longer than they need to."
The Mercury was unable to contact DT Designs or Altaf Gaffar for a comment.
Is the diocese "turning its back" on four historic city churches?
The Leicester Citizen, journal of the Leicester Civic Society, is always an interesting read and its thought-provoking articles are never afraid to broach difficult subjects.
In his chairman's page, Stuart Bailey states the visit to Leicester by the Queen at the start of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations was "a highlight of recent months".
He observes the Queen visited Leicester Cathedral for the first time and that "from her reaction (she) was suitably impressed by this beautiful building and its setting".
Mr Bailey then goes on to say that our cathedral, "while not one of the great historic cathedrals with monastic origins and world heritage status… can claim an intimate connection with the ancient city".
He says: "When you enter the cathedral closes at Exeter, Lichfield or Wells, you are instantly in a world apart. In Leicester, however, the cathedral has always felt to be an integral part of our city."
Mr Bailey states that the society is working with the cathedral authorities over the proposed Cathedral Gardens that will, it is hoped, "create a truly attractive open space and undo the damage inflicted by the poor 1980s design, which itself replaced the churchyard".
This is all very positive and encouraging. However, Mr Bailey adds a sobering paragraph: "Of course, it's not all sweetness and light.
"In being welcomed at our cathedral, the Queen would have been unaware of the Diocese of Leicester's heritage at risk, in the form of no fewer than four historic churches, all listed buildings, three Victorian and one early Medieval – St Saviour's, St Paul's, St Barnabas and the 12th century St Peter's Belgrave – now closed for worship."
Elsewhere in the journal we read: "One church building at risk is one too many, but Leicester now has four.
"Their plight is the result of the Diocese of Leicester deliberately turning its back on its own built heritage."
So how does the diocese answer this?
"In no sense has the diocese 'walked away' from these beautiful buildings," says a diocese spokesman.
"It is always a matter of sadness when a church building is no longer able to be used for its original purpose, because these places have always played a very important part in the life of the community and carry vital memories for many.
"This sense of loss is heightened when the building also has significant architectural or historical features.
"The diocese, which has responsibility for seeking alternative uses for closed Church of England buildings, works very hard to safeguard this heritage, even though it is often very difficult to find a suitable new use.
"Meanwhile, we do all we can to protect and maintain these empty buildings against the ravages of time, the weather and, increasingly, thieves and vandals.
"At the same time, we face the challenge of resourcing the churches which remain open.
"We welcome such practical and financial support as is available from other agencies, but the majority of the money has to come from the Church's own resources. We never shirk our responsibilities."
"Creative" buyer wanted for 12th century church
A medieval church which has stood empty for more than six months has been put up for sale.
Grade II-listed St Peter's, in Belgrave, Leicester, went on the market this week.
The church was shut in November last year, despite fierce opposition from worshippers and Leicester Civic Society.
It has since been targeted by thieves and vandals who have stolen lead from the roof and decapitated the statue of St Peter that stands in the doorway.
Leicester estate agent Andrew Granger & Co has set a guide price of £150,000.
Surveyor Elizabeth Watson said: "It is a very lovely church. It needs protecting and that's just how it is with buildings like this.
"We are inviting interested people to get in touch and we are happy to give them advice on whether their ideas for development are suitable.
"It could be a library for instance. It could be a nursery, but while the building is in good repair, it would need some work for this use.
"Basically, a person with some good creative ideas would be ideal."
The church was built in the 12th century, but many additions have been made to it over the years, including Edwardian choir stalls and a Victorian vestry.
The earliest slate headstones in the churchyard are dated 1689 and there are a number of memorials to the First World War and the Boer War inside the building.
Its historic and architectural significance mean strict guidelines on development are in place.
The church is being sold on the instructions of the Church Commissioners for England and Leicester Diocesan Board of Finance, who are also in the process of selling St Saviours, Highfields, and St Gabriel's, Rushey Mead.
A document released by the Church of England to give advice to potential developers said: "Many suitable new uses have been found for closed churches, including places of worship for other Christian bodies, civic, cultural or community use, arts and crafts or music or drama centres."
Liz Hudson-Oliff, of the diocese of Leicester, said they hoped for a quick sale.
She said: "One does not like to see such a building lie empty for any length of time, because it is then that you get problems with vandalism and the like.
"We would hope for a quick sale and for it to be turned into something appropriate.
"The church was put on the market because there were too many churches in the area for the amount of people using them."
Leicester Civic Society has welcomed the announcement that the building is on the market.
Chairman Stuart Bailey said: "That was very quick indeed and I am delighted. However, as I said back before it shut, it will be very difficult to use this building for anything other than a church, because of its listed status.
"I fear that a suitable buyer will not be found, but would love to see it brought back into use in a suitable way."
For sale: one historic church - guide price £250,000 to £750,000
It’s a striking example of gothic Victorian architecture , and part of the legacy of a world-famous designer. Yet it is disused, falling into disrepair and up for sale. Adam Wakelin reports
St Saviour's Church used to have its name stuck on the front in plastic letters. Many have now fallen off or been stolen. It is ST VIOU S C CH now. Oddly appropriate, perhaps. A gibberish sign for a boarded-up building that doesn't make much sense around here any more. Not as it is, anyway.
Assistant surveyor Joe Welch, of Andrew Granger & Co, is sliding back the last of the heavy bolts on a side door when the Mercury arrives for a viewing.
Inside, the temperature drops like a brick. It's cold enough to stiffen a line of washing, even on a sunny day like this one. Boards nailed across the windows to deter vandals keep the interior in darkness.
Joe goes to switch on the lights. When they come on, it is easy to see why the building is Grade II* listed. Standard estate agent blurb doesn't begin to do somewhere like this justice.
That's probably why Andrew Granger & Co hasn't bothered with it. The building's sale brochure sets aside superlatives and sticks to thefacts:
A large Victorian gothic church designed by architect Sir George Gilbert Scott; red brick with a stone spire and slate roof, built in 1875-77, the last and largest church of the man who built the Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras and the Albert Memorial. To be sold as a job lot with the next door neighbourhood centre, a former school. Guide price: £250,000 to £750,000.
"We want to focus on the fact that here is a fantastic opportunity to acquire a wonderful piece of Leicester's heritage and really bring it back into use," says Joe.
Doing that comes with all manner of complications – and it tells the story of just how difficult it is to stop some of Leicestershire's best buildings falling empty and derelict.
You don't have to be religious to be awed by a building like St Saviour's. Inside and out, the sheer size of the place is enough to draw a gasp.
It really is magnificent, a muscular monument to Christianity that has towered over everything else in this corner of Highfields for more than 130 years.
The building is big in thought and deed. Four rows of long pews stretch into the distance, lolly stick-small in Gilbert Scott's cavernous space. Once, 1,000 worshippers flocked here to be spiritually uplifted and consoled, and they were comfortably accommodated.
Not any more. St Saviour's has been closed for six years. The last time it was anything like full must have been decades ago.
Most of the fixtures and fittings have been stripped out, removed to stop them being burned or smashed by vandals who used to break in before the building was made more secure.
A few things remain. You can see how its congregation fell away in the framed Christening lists that still hang on one wall. In the 1970s there were five or six new names being added every month. By the early 90s, there would be one. Often not even that.
But St Saviour's was on borrowed time even as its mortar began to dry. Leicester's religious impulse was already beginning to wane.
As early as the 1890s, Church of England attendance began a slow but inexorable decline.
The veil-wearers and men with beards walking past the building today tell you what happened next without saying a word.
Religion again thrives around St Saviour's. There is no shortage of believers in Highfields, but this is now an overwhelmingly Muslim area.
In 2005, the church was closed. Three years later, Leicester City Council decided not to renew its lease on the nearby neighbourhood centre. It too was boarded up. Leaving the buildings to rot was never an option. But what do you do with them?
The Diocese of Leicester, along with Andrew Granger & Co, has been working on that for several years.
There are more than 300 CofE churches in Leicestershire. They form some of the county's finest architecture, yet some are ruinously expensive to repair and maintain as congregations dwindle.
The decision to close a church is never taken lightly, says Andrew Roberts, acting secretary for the Diocese of Leicester.
Sometimes, though, there is no other option. Selling a building is better than letting it fall down.
Six city and county churches are on the market or under offer: St Saviour's, St Peter's Church in Belgrave, St Gabriel's Church off Gipsy Lane, St Paul's Church in Kirby Road, St Peter's Church in Saxby and St James' Church, Snibston in Coalville.
Selling those properties is a lot more complicated than you might think.
St Saviour's Church, like many of the others, is a listed building.
Neither English Heritage nor the local planning authority will allow a development that compromises its character or architectural integrity. Even something as basic as removing the pews will have to be justified.
Then there are the Church Commissioners who have to be satisfied.
They handle the sale of the building on behalf of the diocese – and they have to be assured it will be put to good use.
It would not be deemed appropriate, for example, to turn a church into a pub or betting shop, says Mr Roberts.
And there lies the conundrum. In St Saviour's you have beautiful, historic Christian building in an area that's nice enough, but not particularly upwardly mobile or wonderfully served by transport links.
Nothing is an easy fit with Gilbert Scott's grand gothic vision.
The estate agents and the diocese have attracted some criticism for allowing the building to stand empty for so long.
But making a quick sale then seeing it fall through because the buyer got bogged down in planning problems would not have been sensible, says Joe.
To prevent that, they have worked with English Heritage and Leicester City Council to develop a planning brief for the church and neighbourhood centre. This outlines potential future uses of the buildings and provides general guidance on acceptable alterations.
Options for the church include: keeping it as a place of worship; turning it into a community centre, creche or day nursery; creating an art gallery or museum; or using it as an educational or medical centre.
It could also be converted into offices, flats or even a hotel – although any residential conversion will be challenging due to the difficulties of sub-dividing the building without compromising its architectural integrity.
Would an upmarket hotel or swanky apartments work in Highfields?
It's hard to see how.
"It's one of those buildings where we'll have to let the market decide what to do with it," says Joe.
Anyone interested in making a bid has to do so before July 1. The best options will go forward to be developed further.
The asking price of between £250,000 and £750,000 reflects the different uses to which the building could be put.
The Church Commissioners won't let the building be sold for a song, but cash won't be the only consideration. A third of the proceeds will go to the Churches Conservation Trust, which looks after closed churches, and the remainder will go to funding social and community work.
The first preference is often to retain a church for a denomination of Christian worship, says Mr Roberts. If that's not possible, then they would probably like to see at least some of the site put to community use.
Perhaps the old school could accommodate something more commercial, and the church could be opened up to benefit local residents.
"It is finding the right balance to make the site work in a social and commercial sense," he says. "Sometimes you get schemes that are residential conversions and they are sympathetic. No-one likes selling churches, but you can't just let them fall down. It is about finding an appropriate use for them."
Tragedy of St Saviour's
The plight of Leicester's redundant churches is an ever-increasing problem.
What is going to happen to St Peter's Belgrave, St Gabriel's and St Barnabas? Will they stand dejected and rotting like the once magnificent edifices of St Paul's and St Saviour's, or even end up like the burnt-out shell of St Augustine's?
There is a serious problem here and it needs to be addressed, as is made all too clear in an article by Karen Green in the November edition of the Leicester Citizen, journal of the Leicester Civic Society.
It is entitled "The Threat to St Saviour's" – now a heartrending sight of neglect and dereliction, but was once the pride of the area. Here is just part of what she has to say:
"From christenings to funerals, the generations who lived in the densely populated area had their own personal attachment to St Saviour's and many stories to tell. I recently received contact from a lady who informed me about one of the windows located in the Memorial Chapel. Here great grandparents lost their son in France during the Great War; they worshipped at St Saviour's and paid for the window to be installed. Depicted is the image of an angel with vibrant halo and robes, the angel's face is the actual face of the fallen soldier.
"All very poignant and one example of how St Saviour's provides a tangible link to the social history of our city.
"Sadly in 2005, St Saviour's closed its doors as a functioning church and has subsequently been declared redundant. In 2010 it presents a sorry sight sitting in unkempt grounds where discarded waste and overgrown flora are the norm.
"The impression that no one cares has been seen as a green light for drug users, drinkers and vandals, and the result of their unwanted attention is devastating. The window I mentioned is half-gone, having been used as a means of entrance, what is left is peppered with holes. The once beautifully ornate pulpit is obliterated and several small fires have been started which fortunately didn't take firm hold.
"It is heartbreaking to witness such a precious building awaiting a dreadful fate."
St Saviour's if of architectural significance — not just because of its size, but the fact that it was the last project of one of the greatest of all Victorian architects, Sir George Gilbert Scott – whose designs include the frontage of the magnificently restored St Pancras Station and the Albert Memorial.
In her last paragraph Karen Green writes: "There have been too many historic buildings and monuments lost in Leicester in recent years through ignorance, apathy and wanton destruction and enough is enough! We must do all in our power to ensure that buildings such as St Saviour's are brought into use for future generations. It's time to insist that the privileged guardians of Leicester's heritage do all they can to adequately protect what is – when all is said and done – our true and rightful inheritance."
To join the Leicester Civic Society call 01509 520 904.
This week it was announced that St Saviour's was to be sold.
